Karnataka and Goa on Sunday became the latest States to ban manufacture and sale of Nestle’s Maggi noodles following a central food watchdog directive.

“The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) directed us to temporarily stop Nestle India from manufacturing or selling its noodles, including variants, in the state as a precautionary measure to ensure public health,” State Health Minister U.T. Khader said.

Goa also joined several other states in banning the sale of Nestle’s instant noodle brand ‘Maggi’ which is at the centre of a raging nationwide row over food safety concerns.

Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar announced the ban keeping in view a similar measure taken by various other states though Maggi samples tested by Goa’s health regulator did not find any harmful contents in them.

“Since Maggi has been already banned across the country, we have decided not to take a chance and ban it in Goa,” he told reporters in Mapusa town near here.

“Though the results of Maggi samples tested in state-run Food and Drugs Administration’s (FDA) laboratory did not show presence of any harmful contents, the State Government has decided to ban sale of Maggi here,” he said.

Though preliminary results of tests conducted at a private lab in Bangalore indicated that the levels of lead in the noodles were below the permissible limit, the State health department advised stakeholders to refrain from marketing, distributing and selling the noodles, and also asked the public not to consume it.

“We have also directed the company (Nestle) to withdraw its Maggi stocks from all stores and retail formats across the State. Stringent action will be taken against offenders,” Mr. Khader said.

“We will consider further action against the company after we get the final test report from the central food laboratory in Kolkata,” Mr. Khader said.

After dithering initially, the health department on June 1 picked up samples of Maggi noodles from its manufacturing units and retail outlets, for tests by the state-run Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) at Mysuru and two private laboratories in Bengaluru.

When CFTRI declined to test the samples, citing jurisdiction and rules governing it, the health department asked the private labs to ascertain the lead and MSG (monosodium glutamate) content in Maggi noodles.

“We are waiting for test reports on MSG content in Maggi from the private labs, which is expected on Monday. If the tests confirm that it’s harmful for consumption, we will totally ban [Maggi]. We will also advise eateries to remove it from menu,” Mr. Khader reiterated.

According to the regulator FSSAI, the multinational company violated three mandatory conditions by having lead in excess of the permissible levels of 2.5 ppm (parts per million), misleading labelling information on the product label and selling Maggi oats masala noodles without its approval.

The private labs are Robust Materials Technology Ltd and TUV SUD labs, accredited to the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL).

Kannada film industry is growing vastly with each passing day. Movies here, have reached other film industries and they will soon be remade in other languages. But do Sandalwood actors share a cordial relationship with each other off-screen? The reports in Gandhinagara say that, many actors in real life do not share cordial relationship with each other.

Story about two such actors has come to the limelight today. Rumours say that Shivarajkumar and Sudeep are off-screen enemies! Yes, Shivarajkumar and Sudeep,who were the talk of the town for their big fight during Dr Raj Cup Cricket tournament are still continuing their cold war. The alleged reports have proved that Ranna star and Vajrakaya stars don't like each other.

But why is this enemity between Sudeep and Shivarajkumar, now reaching the media? Is it because both these biggies are gearing up for their respective big releases Ranna and Vajrakaya? What is the agenda behind these stars' cold war? Is there any connection between this cold war and their movies Ranna and Vajrakaya?

Arthi Agarwal who once captured the hearts of Telugu youth, with her shinning eyes and sweet smile, is sadly not among us anymore. In her trails to get rid off some fat, the actress lost her life and left a sad milieu in the Telugu film circles. Side effects of Liposuction resulted in a breathing problem and severe cramps near the abdominal area, to which Aarti has left her last breathe.

Her parents played a key role in her success and her sister Aditi Agarwal too was an actress, while his brother tried to stayed away from the filmi affairs. With the sudden and unfortunate demise of Aarti, her family were obviously in a state of shock. But to the pain of celebrities families, they are expected to address fans and media about the causes of Aarti death.

So, Aarti's family somehow tried to cope up withe terrible fact that Aarti is no more and spoke to media conveying their prayers. They affirmed that Aarti Agarwal is a great human being and social activist more than an actress.

Mulki: By keeping the environment clean, a healthy atmosphere can be created. The assets belonged to government belongs to us too this mentality must be awaken in children to protect the assests said, Francis Xavier of Mata Amalodbhav Church in Karnad, Mulki.

As a part of Swacchata Abhiyan, the students of Panchyat School, Rickshaw and car drivers and owners association, cleaned the railway station premises in Mulki. The father of the church said that every Sunday there would be cleanliness drive in the area with the youth of the church.

Station Master and Staffs of the station participated in the drive.