Anna Bhagya scheme introduced to alleviate starvation: Ex-CM Siddaramaiah
“I don’t worry about defeat, but it’s haunting me”
Mysuru, June 12: “I don’t worry about the defeat. But it is haunting me as to why I was defeated despite so much of development works”, said former chief minister Siddaramaiah.
Speaking at a thanks giving programme for the voters of the Varuna Assembly constituency here on Tuesday, Siddaramaiah said that “I don’t worry about the defeat. Victory and defeat is common in democracy. I would accept both defeat and victory equally. But I could not understand as to why people have not accepted me despite achieving development in many sectors. They might have considered the small issues. But I am contended for what I have given for the financial empowerment of the poor, dalits, backward classes and farmers”, he said.
“What mentality I had when I started my political career, the same mentality I had when I was the Chief Minister. Till now, I have the same mentality. In my 40 years political career, I have seen both defeat and victory. I have said I would not contest the election again. But I would work for my supporters and followers”, he said.
“I accept the people’s verdict. The people had defeated Ambedkar, Indira Gandhi. When look at the history, good people face difficult situation. People of the state are like our family. People have false propaganda against me as I am anti-Hindu and have divided Lingayat community. I have never divided the Lingayat community. Basavanna had called Lingayat as a separate religion around 800 years ago. I have just recommended it to the centre. I am not against any caste. But I have belief in human relationship and humanity. Even then, I was targeted”, he said.
“I have introduced an ambitious programme like Anna Bhagya with a concept of making Karnataka hunger-free to ensure that no person should sleep without food. Anna Bhagya, Manasvini, Mythri, Krishi Bhagya, waiver off farm loans, Vidya Siri, nutritious food for pregnant women, Ksheera Bhagya, free education for girl children from primary education to higher education, laptops, free bus pass, 50 per cent reservation for SC/ST in contracts and other programmes were introduced. I have tried to empower SC/ST communities financially. I have not done all these for votes. I have done this for the welfare of the people”, he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks as ‘Bhaiyo aur behno’. Yeddyurappa and Shobha Karandlaje bring food from hotels and have it in the houses of dalits saying that ‘BJP nadige Dalitara Mane Kadege’. As to why the BJP, who claim that the ration for the Anna Bhagya is being given from the Centre, has not introduced Anna Bhagya in BJP ruling states like Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and other states? It was his dream. So, he had introduced it in Karnataka, he said.
BJP people are bluffs. They do not want development. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had come to state and lied. Amith Shah did the same. People did not give clear mandate to any political party. Though BJP has emerged as the single largest party, the Congress has got more per cent of vote sharing. BJP has got more seats, but less votes. But the Congress got more votes and less seats. This is the beauty of the democracy, the former chief minister analysed.
The BJP bite the dust in the by-elections held in other parts of the country. In 2019 Lok Sabha election, the Congress would get majority and Rahul Gandhi would become the Prime Minister, he exuded confidence.
I’m indebted to Varuna constituency people
“Voters of Varuna constituency have elected Dr Yatindra Siddaramaiah with a huge margin of 58,000 votes. Thank you for your concerns. I have cleared some of your obligation. But now, it is increased again. My son and I would serve you people forever”, he said.
People force to become PM
The people gathered there were seen shouting throughout the programme that Siddaramaiah should contest the Lok Sabha election and become the Prime Minister.
Varuna MLA Dr Yathindra Siddaramaiah presided over the programme in which Minister Puttaranga Shetty, MP Druvanarayan, MLCs R Dharmasena and Ivan D’Souza, former MLA MK Somashekar and others were present.
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Jhansi fire: Nurse's heroic efforts helped save over dozen babies
Lucknow/Jhansi (UP), Nov 17: Nurse Megha James was on duty when the fire broke out at the Jhansi hospital and she threw herself headlong into the rescue efforts, playing a hero's role by saving several babies.
Even when her salwar got burned, she refused to give up and was able to evacuate 14-15 babies with others' help.
"I had gone to take a syringe to give an injection to a child. When I came back, I saw that the (oxygen) concentrator had caught fire. I called the ward boy, who came with the fire extinguisher and tried to put it out. But by then, the fire had spread," James said.
Ten babies perished in a fire that broke out at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of the Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College in Jhansi Friday night.
Faced with an enormous blaze, James's mind worked with a frenetic speed, to the extent she cared little about burning herself.
"My chappal caught fire and I burned my foot. Then my salwar caught fire. I removed my salwar and discarded it. At that time, my mind was virtually not working," she told PTI Videos.
James just wore another salwar and went back to the rescue operation.
"There was a lot of smoke, and once the lights went out, we could not see anything. The entire staff brought out at least 14-15 children. There were 11 beds in the ward with 23-24 babies," she said.
Had the lights not gone out they could have saved more children, James said. "It all happened very suddenly. None of us had expected it."
Assistant Nursing Superintendent Nalini Sood praised James's valour and recounted bits from how the rescue operation was carried out.
"The hospital staff broke the glasses of the NICU ward to evacuate the babies. It was then Nurse Megha's salwar caught fire. Instead of caring for her safety, she stayed there to rescue the babies and handed them over to people outside," she said.
Sood said James is currently undergoing treatment at the same medical college. She said she did not know the extent of her burns.
"The rescued babies were shifted to a ward very close to the NICU ward… When I recall the scene, I feel like crying," she said.
Dr Anshul Jain, the head of the anaesthesiology department at the medical college, explained the standard rescue operation and claimed the hospital followed the protocol to the T.
"In the triage process during an ICU evacuation, the policy is to evacuate less-affected patients first. The rationale behind this approach is that patients requiring minimal support can be relocated quickly, enabling a larger number of evacuations to be completed in a shorter time.
"In contrast, patients on ventilators or requiring high oxygen support demand more time and resources for evacuation," he said.
"This principle was successfully implemented in Jhansi, playing a significant role in saving many lives," Jain said.
A newborn rescued from the fire died due to illness on Sunday, Jhansi District Magistrate Avinash Kumar said.
