Govt. is committed to develop entire Karnataka: CM Kumaraswamy
72nd Independence Day celebrations at Manekshaw Parade Grounds
Bengaluru, August 15: Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy who hoisted the tricolour as part of the 72nd Independence Day at the Manekshaw Parade Grounds here on Wednesday, wished the people of the state on the occasion of the Independence Day.
Quoting the lyrics of Rashtrakavi Kuvempu- “Bharata Bhoomi Nanna Thayi Nanna Poreva Tottilu, Jeevanavene Devigereve Bidute Gudia Kattalu”-, the Chief Minister said that “nonviolence is the most influential weapon that the world has ever seen. We are representing the heroic tradition which fought for independence through non-violence. India is the front runner in achieving the unity in diversity among other countries. I sincerely bow my head to all freedom fighters including Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabhbhai Patel, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Lokmanya Tilak, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Dr BR Ambedkar and others for their sacrifice for the independence”, he said.
“Our government is committed to develop Karnataka without giving room for damaging the unity of the state. The budgets presented by the previous government and my government are complementary to the comprehensive development of the state. My government is ready to implement all the programmes mentioned in the budget”, he promised.
Independent India was built on the basis of the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi. Now, the country was celebrating the 150th Gandhi Jayanti. As a preamble to this celebration, the government has planned stage around 1000 theatre shows across the state under the title ‘Gandhi-150, a theatre journey’. In the same way, the country was in the threshold of celebrating the 125th anniversary of Swami Vivekananda’s speech at all faith conference in Chicago. The state government was planning to celebrate this occasion also, he said.
“I have close relationship with Belagavi. I have the credit of beginning the Assembly Session in Belagavi. I have laid the foundation stone for Suvarna Soudha in Belagavi. Most importantly, I have started my much ambitious programme ‘village stay’ from Belagavi district. The government is planning to shift some of the departments to my beloved district”, he said.
The CM said that the state government was committed to protect the interests of Kannadigas living in other states especially Goa, Kerala and Maharashtra and would have cordial relationship with those states.
One of the priorities of his government was to ensure permanent solutions to the farmers problems and creating job opportunities to the hands. It was the long pending demand from the farming community to waive off the loans. Now, his government has responded positively to that demand and the government has decided to waive off around 49,000 crore loans availed from cooperative banks and nationalized banks. No other states in the country have taken such a decision to waive off the farm loans. Already, the government has declared waiver off loans availed from cooperative sector and 20.38 lakh farmers would get the benefit. Shortly, another order would be issued to waive off the loans availed from nationalized banks, he said.
It was not fair to do politics in the name of farmers. Farm loan waiver was not the only solution to the farmers problems. It was an effort to instill confidence among them. The government was thinking about on how to make the agriculture a sustainable and profitable sector, he said.
He had participated in a paddy transplanting in Sitapura in Mandya district. Due to shortage of water, the paddy cultivation was affected in the district for the last three years. This time, because of the sufficient rain, the farmers were happy and he had participated in their happiness. He has decided to conduct such programme once in a month in all districts to educate the farmers on modern agriculture pattern and instill confidence among them, he said.
Thanks to the rain God that all reservoirs were full this time. This year, the state could get more power from hydel power generation units. The 370 MW capacity gas-based power unit at Yelahanka would commission its service this year. In order to strengthen the power transmission, the Energy department would set up 35 new power substations and lay more than 800 km power lines to ensure sufficient power to all sectors, he said.
Education should not be a commodity. The government has decided to provide all needed basic infrastructure for government schools and colleges and increase the students attendance. The government held many meetings regarding this issue and decided to modernize all schools. It was planned to give complete education to rural girls and bring them to the mainstream. To achieve this, it was planned to set up separate residential colleges for girls, he added.
State highway development
In the third phase, total 3,831 km state highways would be developed and in the fourth stage, 2,722 km road would be developed at a cost of Rs 3,480 crore. Because of heavy rains, the roads in coastal region and Malnad region were damaged, bridges were collapsed in many places. For the benefit of the public and school children, total 451 small connecting bridges would be constructed, he said.
In order to ensure hassle-free traffic movement in the Capital city, efforts were on to take up the Metro second stage, peripheral ring road and satellite town train project. Steps would also be taken to protect the tanks and scientific disposal of waste in the Capital city, he said.
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Congress keeps singing to Pakistan's tune, compromising nation's security: Modi
Barpeta/Hojai/ Dibrugarh (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said that while his government carried out 'Operation Sindoor', the Congress continued to "sing to the tune of" Pakistan.
Addressing back-to-back election rallies in Barpeta, Hojai and Dibrugarh in Assam, Modi also accused the Congress of taking a myopic view on development, while asserting that the BJP focuses on long-term growth.
"The party always took short-term measures so that they could indulge in corruption. But the BJP looks far ahead while taking decisions for all-around development of all sections of society," he said.
The PM alleged that during the 2016 surgical strikes or the 2025 'Operation Sindoor', the Congress has always sung to Pakistan's tune, giving importance to their agenda.
"This Pakistan connection always weighs heavily on the country, and we can never allow that," he said.
Modi also accused the Congress of neglecting the Army by refusing to implement the 'One Rank, One Pension' for the veterans for decades.
"But the BJP government ensured that justice was done to those who protect the nation by giving them this benefit," he said, adding that so far, Rs 1.24 lakh crore has been disbursed to the bank accounts of veterans.
Modi accused the Gandhi family of indulging in dynastic politics and corruption.
"The first family of Congress is the most corrupt in the country, indulging in scams of huge proportions and is currently out on bail. The Congress can do only two things -- tell lies and indulge in corruption," he alleged.
In an apparent swipe at Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi's "mohabbat ki dukaan" pitch, Modi said the Congress represents "mithya ki dukaan" (shop of lies) and "apmaan" (insult).
"There is another family in Assam... and both are making false promises ahead of the polls," he said, in an apparent reference to Gandhi's deputy in Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi, who is also the president of the party's state unit.
The PM also accused the Gandhi family of occupying land in prime locations of Delhi.
"The Congress alleges that the BJP acquires land from people, but they don't talk about the prime lands in Delhi with them in the name of National Herald, Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust and others," he said.
Modi said the BJP acquired land for the state's development, which has benefited all sections of society.
"They are now talking about land as it (land) has shifted from beneath their feet," he claimed.
Referring to the Emergency Landing Facility (ELF) at Moran, the PM said that earlier, the road conditions were such that even vehicles had difficulty in plying, but now fighter jets can land on a highway in Assam.
Modi alleged that the Congress adopted a stepmotherly attitude towards the state and neglected Upper Assam and the Barak Valley.
"The Congress did nothing for the tea garden workers, but the BJP government gave them land rights for their homes," he claimed.
"During my last visit to Dibrugarh, I had interacted with women tea garden workers, but to insult me, they made fun of their dress and culture," he alleged.
The PM alleged Congress only helped infiltrators for vote bank politics, and allowed them to settle on the land belonging to 'sattras', temples, tribal communities, besides the Kaziranga National Park.
"It is the BJP that is freeing these lands from the encroachers and also giving land rights to the indigenous people of Assam," he said.
Asserting that people's aspirations are the BJP's priority, Modi said, "The Congress is in power in Himachal, Karnataka and Telangana; they made tall promises before the polls, but what have they done so far?"
Referring to the West Asia conflict, Modi said the government is working to shield citizens, especially the poor, middle class and farmers, from its impact.
"It has been the BJP's priority since the beginning to focus on minimising their sufferings, and this will continue," he said.
Modi said peace was re-established in Assam after a lot of sacrifices, and this has led to the state's development under the BJP rule.
"To continue development, it is necessary to keep the Congress out," he claimed.
Modi said the 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament would be implemented from the 2029 Lok Sabha elections.
"A special session of Parliament has been convened on April 16 to discuss the issue with all parties and take this forward. But some people are trying to spread rumours even about this," he said.
"All states in the country will benefit from this. They have waited 40 years for this, and women in Assam should urge all parties to ensure the bill's passage," he said.
Listing the various works done by his government, Modi said the minimum support price for paddy has increased from Rs 1,300 per quintal in 2013 to Rs 2,370 per quintal at present.
"Farmers’ income is increasing, and the BJP government is transferring money directly to their bank accounts, bypassing middlemen," he said, noting that Assam's famed 'Joha' rice is now being exported to European countries.
Polling for the 126 assembly constituencies in Assam will be held on April 9, while counting of votes will take place on May 4.
