Bike lifter  arrested

Sambalpur:r: The Jamankira police on Monday arrested Soumya Ranjan Amanta, 26, for his involvement in bike lifting cases. The cops also recovered 10 stolen bikes from his possession. The accused was involved in stealing of bikes from Sason, Sambalpur, Kuchinda, Barkote and Deogarh.

Marathon

Bhubaneswar: The  Bhubaneswar Run-a-thon, the first professional marathon organised by steel major Tata Steel, on Monday became a hit with 3,000 runners participating in it. The 10-km run was flagged off at 6am at Kalinga Stadium by Sidhant Mohapatra, MP, Berhampur. Sukumati Laguri and Pravesh Sini emerged winners in women and men categories and was awarded Rs 51,000 each. It was followed by a 7-km run for corporates and another 7-km run for institutions. 

Students ill

Bhawanipatna : Around 80 students have been hospitalised after consuming contaminated food served at SC & ST Asram School Hostel at Bankapalasa in Kalahandi. The students, who had eaten at the hostel mess last night, started vomiting and complained of giddiness on Monday morning.

Doctor held

Berhampore: Ambika Mohapatra, 45, an ayush doctor, was arrested in Kandhamal for allegedly torturing and harassing a 25-year-old pregnant tribal woman who was her domestic help, police said.

Fraud nabbed

Bhadrak:  The Bhadrak police busted a racket involved in siphoning depositors money from banks. The cops arrested three persons, including a M. Tech student.

Closure order

Berhampur: Ganjam collector Prem Chowdhury has ordered closure of gupchup stalls in the city for 15 days as a  measure to tackle jaundice.

New VAT bill

Bhubaneswar: The state government on Monday introduced the Odisha Value Added Tax (Amendment) Bill 2015 in the Assembly. It empowers the state government to increase threshold limit for liability to pay tax from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 10 lakh in case of manufacturers and Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh in case of general traders. Under the proposed law, the turn over limit for retailers to pay turnover tax has been increased from Rs 40 lakh to Rs 50 lakh.

Bill language

Bhubaneswar: Parliamentary affairs minister Bikram Keshari Arukh today announced that all legislative bills would be circulated in both English and Odia. The Opposition has been demanding for the same since long.

Cultural fest

Bhubaneswar: In an attempt to revive the dying folk arts of the state, the state Sangeet Natak Akademi is organising a cultural festival on February 28 and 29 at the Bhanja Kala mandap in the city. A number of rare art forms such as ghuduki nacha, dhumpa music, laudi dance will be performed by folk groups from across the state. Artistes will also play instruments such as kendara.

Traffic hit

Bhubaneswar: Traffic movement was hit for an hour on national highway near Palasuni after residents blocked the road following the death of a 50-year-old person. The deceased Lingaraj Guru from Bankuala died after a cement-laden truck hit his motorcycle.

Accident

Bhubaneswar: A 37-year-old contractual employee of Gopalpur port today died after he fell down from Palasa-Cuttack passenger train. The deceased, Pradip Kumar Panigrahi, a resident of Srikakulam in Andhra Pradesh, died after he fell from the running rain while he was on his way to Cuttack.

Exam meet

Bhubaneswar: The state government on Monday organised a meeting for the smooth conduct of the annual High School Certificate (HSC) examinations scheduled to begin on February 23. Chief secretary G.C. Pati interacted with the district education officers, board officials and others in charge of the examinations on the measures taken at their respective districts.