Published Dec 31, 2023 | 7:00 PM ⚊ Updated Dec 31, 2023 | 7:00 PM
Several exclusive stories by South First made a significant impact on the ground and exposed stories that were being hushed up.
Our stories prompted authorities to take respond, acknowledge and action. Here is a list of the top impacts made by the stories.
On 17 January, hours after South First reported on the incident of the emergency exit door being opened, by BJP MP Tejasvi Surya, IndiGo issued an official statement but withheld the name of the passenger. It took the airline a whole month and seven days to officially acknowledge a grave violation of air safety norms aboard their aircraft.
Even as eyewitnesses to the incident, co-passengers on the flight, alleged that the passenger who opened the emergency exit door was BJP MP Tejasvi Surya, but neither Indigo Airlines nor DGCA revealed the name.
In a matter of hours, none other than Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia himself had to disclose the name of his party colleague as the one who was involved in the incident. This was a South First expose followed up by every other media platform.
In August, South First uncovered the reality faced by families needing critical paediatric bone marrow transplantations at the Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology (KMIO). Following this, the Department of Medical Education (DME) took note of the various allegations against the cancer institute.
Taking cognisance of a South First report on the adverse effects of mining on the livelihoods of Neyveli farmers, the Principal Bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) took a case suo motu and transferred it to the NGT’s southern bench on 9 October. The Principal Bench, comprising Chairperson Justice Prakash Srivatsava, Judicial Member Justice Sudhir Agarwal, and Expert Member A Senthil Vel transferred the matter to the NGT’s southern bench.
The Bengaluru school that marked a six-year-old Upper KG student “fail” has revised the status of the girl’s result as “pass” in its app. “St Joseph Chaminade Academy pre-primary school has revised the app for results and has removed the word ‘FAIL’ from my daughter’s report card,” the student’s father Manoj Badal said.
After South First reported the incident, Anekal Block Education Officer (BEO) Jayalakshmi took note of the same and sent a notice to the school seeking an explanation.
Following South First‘s extensive ground report and coverage of the tragic deaths of more than 15 children afflicted by a rare skin ailment named Xeroderma Pigmentosum in three villages of the Hanur taluk of the Chamarajnagar district in Karnataka, Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao visited the location on 22 September.
He personally visited Kuratti Hosur, Shettihalli, and Bhadrenahalli, engaging with the families of five children who are now grappling with the disease.
