From the Newsroom: Internet ban, arrests mark 'Chakka Jam' called by farmers

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In your evening news brief, From The Newsroom, Internet ban, arrests mark 'Chakka Jam' called by farmers; Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa says his government is taking steps to reclaim more than 300 acres of BDA land encroached upon across Bengaluru and Myanmar sees anti-coup protests.

Here is the top news of February 6, 2021:

The Ministry of Home Affairs on Saturday once again suspended internet services at the farmers' protest sites in Singhu, Ghazipur and Tikri at Delhi's borders and adjoining localities for 24 hours. This came against the backdrop of agitating farmers' unions calling for a 'chakka jam' (traffic block) for three hours on Saturday afternoon.

Around 50 people were detained near Shaheedi Park in central Delhi on Saturday for allegedly holding a protest in support of the 'chakka jam' call given by the farmers agitating against the Centre's new agri laws, police said. Several agitating farmers in Bengaluru's Yelahanka were detained on Saturday for blocking the highway for over two hours.

The state government is taking steps to reclaim more than 300 acres of BDA land encroached upon across Bengaluru, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said on Friday, pegging its revenue potential at over Rs 3,000 crore. Speaking in the legislative assembly, Yediyurappa, who is also the Bengaluru city development minister, said scams worth Rs 400 crore had been detected in the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) and action was being taken. The government has suspended 22 BDA officials since 2019, and departmental inquiry is underway against 12 of them. Show-cause notices have been issued to 19 officials and their responses are being verified, he said.

Myanmar saw its largest anti-coup protests yet on Saturday with young demonstrators spilling on to the streets to denounce the country's new military regime, despite a nationwide internet blackout aimed at stifling a growing chorus of popular dissent. Around 3,000 demonstrators gathered on a road near Yangon University, most holding up the three-finger salute that has come to symbolise resistance to the army takeover.

Source: DHNS/ PTI/AFP