Bengaluru, Jan 26: Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Wednesday launched 'Grama One', which would offer services of various government departments in rural areas of 12 districts.

The services would be extended to all the districts by March-end.

"Grama One is a technology-driven programme. We have seen people queuing up at Tahsildar offices for government services such as issuance of caste certificates. Mostly, the people may not get responses on time leading to middlemen and corruption. On receiving several complaints, we have decided to offer services online at gram panchayat-level," Bommai said.

Speaking to reporters here, he said Grama One centre at gram panchayat would be linked to Tahsildar, Assistant Commissioner offices and Atal Seva Kendras to provide services, including banking and Aadhar card, among others.

"Our goal is to provide about 100 services. For now, 20-25 services will be provided," he added.

Earlier, Grama One had been run on a trial basis in four districts, where over six lakh people have benefitted.

The Chief Minister said Grama One is now being launched in 12 districts and in 3,024 gram panchayats.

The government aims to extend it to all gram panchayats by end of March, he said, and added their functioning would be monitored regularly.

"A separate cell will be set up with equipment and technical personnel in the offices of tahsildars to improve efficiency. The e-governance department will be monitoring and reviewing the programme," he added.

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Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.

In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.

Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.

Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.

According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.

He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.

He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.

Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.

He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.

Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.

He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.