CM Siddaramaiah vows Rs 70,000 cr irrigation boost, Secretariat for Kalyana Karnataka
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Kalaburagi (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday greeted citizens on Kalyana Karnataka Liberation Day and reaffirmed his government’s commitment to the region’s all-round development by outlining key initiatives, budget allocations and upcoming projects.
He said the occasion was a reminder of the sacrifices made by freedom fighters who fought for the liberation of Hyderabad-Karnataka from the Nizam’s rule.
“Whilst the rest of India was celebrating independence on 15 August 1947, this region was still not free. The atrocities of the Razakars had reached unbearable limits,” he said, recalling that the region was integrated into the Indian Union thanks to the determination of local heroes and the resolve of the first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and the then Home Minister Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel.
The CM paid homage to several freedom fighters, including Sharanagouda Inamdar, Raja Venkatappa Nayak, Dattatreya Avaradi, Shivamurthy Swamy Alavandi, Matamari Nagappa and many others, calling their sacrifices “unforgettable”.
Turning to development, Siddaramaiah said since the introduction of Article 371-J in 2013, 1,19,923 posts have been identified for direct recruitment, of which 84,620 were already filled.
“Now that the issue of internal reservation has been resolved, we intend to fill the remaining vacancies in a phased manner.”
For 2025–26, the state government has allocated Rs 5,000 crores to the KKRDB. “Thus far, over Rs 14,000 crores have been utilised for 41,103 works, with 32,985 completed,” he said.
Siddaramaiah highlighted that his government had invested nearly Rs one lakh crore in its flagship guarantee schemes.
Under the Shakti scheme alone, 77.6 crore women have availed free bus travel at a cost of Rs 2,100 crores.
Gruha Lakshmi had benefitted 24.78 lakh women heads of households with Rs 9,650 crores disbursed, while Anna Bhagya had spent over Rs 3,200 crores in the region and Yuva Nidhi has provided Rs 172 crores to 5.75 lakh unemployed graduates and diploma holders.
On irrigation, Siddaramaiah said his government has approved land acquisition for Phase III of the Krishna Upper Canal Project through farmer consent and would raise the height of the Almatti Dam.
“This decision will provide irrigation to over 15 lakh acres across Raichur, Yadgir, Kalaburagi and Koppal. We will invest over Rs 70,000 crores in the next three years,” he said.
He also said "a Kalyana Karnataka Secretariat would be established in Kalaburagi", with a formal notification to be issued next week.
“The development of Karnataka is incomplete without the development of Kalyana Karnataka,” Siddaramaiah concluded, urging citizens to work together for “a new India and a new Karnataka”.
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Ordinance issued to increase number of Supreme Court judges from 34 to 38
New Delhi (PTI): The government has promulgated an ordinance to increase the strength of the Supreme Court from the present 34 judges to 38, including the Chief Justice of India.
The law ministry notified the ordinance on Saturday, which amended the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956, to increase the sanctioned strength of the top court.
So far, the sanctioned strength of the top court was 34, including the Chief Justice of India (CJI). Now, the number of judges has been increased by four, taking the sanctioned strength to 38.
The top court will now have 37 judges, other than the CJI.
With the apex court having two vacancies at present, and the ordinance coming into force immediately, the Supreme Court Collegium will now have to recommend six names for appointment as judges in the top court.
A bill will be brought in the Monsoon Session of Parliament to convert the ordinance – an executive order – into a law passed by Parliament.
The Union Cabinet had cleared a draft bill on May 5 to increase the number of apex court judges.
The strength of the Supreme Court was last increased from 30 to 33 (excluding the CJI) in 2019.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, as originally enacted in 1956, put the maximum number of judges (excluding the CJI) at 10.
This number was increased to 13 by the Supreme Court (Number of Judges), Amendment Act, 1960, and to 17 by another amendment to the law.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Act, 1986, augmented the strength of judges from 17 to 25, excluding the CJI.
A fresh amendment in 2009 further increased the strength from 25 to 30.
Article 124(3) of the Constitution lists the qualifications required to become a Supreme Court judge.
An Indian citizen who has either served as a high court judge for at least five years, or as an advocate for 10 years, or is a distinguished jurist, can be appointed to the top court.
The strength of the Supreme Court is increased based on the recommendations of the CJI, who writes to the Union law minister. After consulting the finance ministry, the Department of Justice under the law ministry moves the Cabinet with a draft bill.
