Housing drive aims to bring slum dwellers to mainstream: CM Siddaramaiah
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Hubballi(PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said his government is distributing houses on a large scale to ensure that slum dwellers are brought into the mainstream.
The CM was speaking at a mega event organised for dedication of 42,345 houses out of 1,80,253 houses being constructed across the State under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana 'Shelter for All' through grant-in-aid of Chief Minister, and distribution of house allotment letters or title deeds on the occasion of golden jubilee celebration of the Slum Development Board.
Recalling his earlier tenure, he said, "When I was the Chief Minister for the first time (2013-18), our Congress government had built 14,58,000 houses and created history and we had brought about a housing revolution. After becoming the CM for the second time (in 2023), after distributing 36,789 houses in the first phase in 2024, our government is distributing 45,000 houses in the second phase."
"We have fulfilled our promises," he said, hitting out at the BJP and the Centre.
Claiming that his government provides Rs 4 to 5 lakh for a house, but the central government contributes less than Rs one lakh, the CM said, "But the name of the scheme is Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. The money is ours, the state government's. Only the name is the Centre's."
After the Congress government came to power, it has spent Rs 5,500 crore on housing in two years, he added.
Dismissing BJP's claims that the government's coffers are empty, the CM said, "We are giving Rs 2,500 crore as subsidy every year for farmers' pump sets. In addition, we are releasing a lot of money for social security schemes including widow's pension, old age pension."
Earlier in the day, installing a cutout of political leaders for the event, a cutout accidentally fell, and three people were injured, and they are receiving treatment at the Hospital in the city.
The CM visited the injured at the hospital after the event.
Expressing regret over the incident, Siddaramaiah directed the officials to provide the injured with the best possible treatment and medicines free of cost until they recover completely, his office said in a statement.
Meanwhile, the BJP held a protest in the city, accusing the government of "violating the protocol" and neglecting the opposition party leaders from the government event.
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Cristiano Ronaldo scores his 100th Saudi Pro League goal
Riyadh (AP): Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 100th Saudi Pro League goal as Al-Nassr beat Al-Shabab 4-2 to move five points clear at the top of the table.
The 41-year-old forward converted a Sadio Mané cross at the near post with 15 minutes remaining to record the 971st goal of his career on Thursday. It was also his 26th league goal of the season.
“Ronaldo is always dangerous going forward and we saw that again today,” Al-Nassr coach Jorge Jesus said.
João Félix, signed from Chelsea in July, scored three goals for the league leaders.
The win took Al-Nassr to 82 points from 32 games, five ahead of Al-Hilal, which has three matches, one more than Nassr, left to play. Al-Hilal meets Al-Kholood on Friday and faces Nassr on Tuesday in what could be a title decider against its Riyadh rival.
“Now we have a derby match against our rival, which is a difficult encounter,” Jesus said.
“We are fully aware of its importance, and we are dealing with it with complete focus as we know that small details could decide the result.”
Ronaldo, a five-time Ballon d'Or winner, has yet to secure a major trophy in Saudi Arabia since signing with Al-Nassr in December 2022.
