Congress 'padayatra' culminates with large rally in Bengaluru
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Bengaluru (PTI): The Congress in Karnataka on Thursday concluded its padayatra' (foot march), demanding implementation of the Mekedatu project across the Cauvery river, by holding a large rally in the city.
The second leg of the padayatra with the theme Namma Neeru Namma Hakku' (Our water, Our right) that began at Ramanagara on February 27, culminated at the National College Ground in Basavanagudi here, after covering a distance of 79.8 kilometres.
The last day of the march today, which saw participation of a large number of people, covered a distance of 11.8 km from Mekhri Circle to National College Ground, causing traffic related issues in parts of the city.
A host of Congress leaders, including AICC General Secretary in-charge of Karnataka Randeep Singh Surjewala, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, state Congress President D K Shivakumar and Leader of Opposition in Assembly Siddaramaiah who led the march, and pontiffs of Mutts were among those who attended the rally.
Addressing the rally, Siddaramaiah accused the Centre of supporting Tamil Nadu in the Mekedatu project issue, for the sake of votes there, and hit out at the BJP government in the state for not putting pressure to get environmental clearance from the Modi government, as they lack "guts".
Thanking party workers, leaders for the success of the total 9 day-long padayatra from both first and second leg, he said there are no court orders or legal hurdles for the project and urged the BJP governments both at the state and Centre to implement it at the earliest.
Also calling BJP a "factory of lies'', the former CM said they have spread false information and issued 'benami' advertisements accusing the previous Congress government of doing nothing for the implementation of Mekedatu project, while the fact is that the government led by him had prepared the DPR for the project.
Calling the padayatra "historic", Shivakumar thanked the people of the state, leaders and workers of his party and said, "this was the fight for the Mekedatu project- for our water, on our land and with our own money."
Accusing the state government of creating trouble for the padayatra by filing about 10 FIRs against Congress leaders, he said, "We did not fear it, we are ready to face it. This is just the beginning, we will have to take it to the conclusion. We are committed to hold similar rallies and marches across Karnataka in the interest of the state."
Surjewala in his address said, Mekedatu padayatra is not Congress' protest or a political fight, but a mission to quench the thirst of Bengaluru and surrounding areas.
Alleging that "double engine BJP governments" have betrayed the people of Karnataka, he urged them to implement the Mekedatu project, which is the right of the people of the state.
Kharge questioned the BJP government at the Centre over the delay in giving environmental clearance to the project, while pointing out that the same were being accorded to industrialists quickly.
This was the second leg of the march that ended abruptly in Ramanagara district on January 13, when the third wave of the COVID-19 had peaked.
The march that had initially begun at Sangama, the confluence of Cauvery and Arkavathi rivers at Kanakapura in Ramanagara district, on January 9, was scheduled to conclude at Basavanagudi in Bengaluru on January 19, after spanning a total distance of nearly 139 km.
It was however temporarily halted on January 13, with limited options before the party, amid surging COVID-19 cases, government prohibiting movement of people, and the Karnataka High Court's strong observations regarding violation of curbs. Several Congress leaders who had attended the march were also infected by coronavirus.
Like in the first leg, cases was registered against Congress leaders including Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Karnataka Epidemic Diseases Act invoked, for holding the march in violation of COVID-19 rules, during the second leg too.
Though the padayatra was projected as apolitical, it was seen as Congress' attempt to mobilise its cadres and consolidate its voter base in the old Mysuru region, which is a Vokkaliga bastion, where Janata Dal (Secular) is its traditional rival and the ruling BJP is attempting to make inroads, ahead of 2023 assembly polls.
Much was at stake for Shivakumar, the man behind this march, as several Congress functionaries believe that it was an attempt by the KPCC chief, ahead of assembly polls, to assert his chief ministerial ambitions, for which Siddaramaiah is also a strong contender.
The party has seen several incidents of political one-upmanship between the two leaders last year.
The march was also seen politically, keeping in mind the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike elections, with the padayatra covering about 15 assembly constituencies in Bengaluru city in the last couple of days.
Both ruling BJP and JD(S) had hit out at Congress calling its march as a "political stunt" ahead of assembly elections next year, and questioned its morality, accusing the party of not putting any efforts to take the project forward while in power.
Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has said that his government was committed to implement the Mekedatu project, as he hit out at the Congress for staging padayatra.
The Karnataka government submitted a Detailed Project Report (DPR) to the Central Water Commission (CWC) in 2019, which was then referred to the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA), where it is stuck currently as Tamil Nadu, which is the lower riparian state, has opposed the project tooth and nail.
Karnataka has maintained that the project within its territory will benefit both states as the surplus water stored can be managed between the two during a distress year, and its implementation will in no way affect the interests of Tamil Nadu's farming communities, as there will be no impact on its share of water.
However, the neighbouring state is of the view that the project would impound and divert the uncontrolled water flow due to Tamil Nadu from Kabini sub-basin, the catchment area below Krishnarajasagara, and also from Simsha, Arkavathy and Suvarnavathi sub-basins besides other small streams.
The Mekedatu multi-purpose (drinking and power) project involves building a balancing reservoir near Kanakapura in Ramanagara district. The estimated Rs 9,000 crore project once completed is aimed at ensuring drinking water to Bengaluru and neighbouring areas (4.75 TMC) and it can also generate 400 MW power.
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Single higher education regulator bill tabled in LS; Oppn flags ‘centralisation,' JPC likely
New Delhi: A bill to set up a 13-member body to regulate institutions of higher education was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan introduced the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, which seeks to establish an overarching higher education commission along with three councils for regulation, accreditation, and ensuring academic standards for universities and higher education institutions in India.
Meanwhile, the move drew strong opposition, with members warning that it could weaken institutional autonomy and result in excessive centralisation of higher education in India.
The Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025, earlier known as the Higher Education Council of India (HECI) Bill, has been introduced in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
The proposed legislation seeks to merge three existing regulatory bodies, the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), into a single unified body called the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan.
At present, the UGC regulates non-technical higher education institutions, the AICTE oversees technical education, and the NCTE governs teacher education in India.
Under the proposed framework, the new commission will function through three separate councils responsible for regulation, accreditation, and the maintenance of academic standards across universities and higher education institutions in the country.
According to the Bill, the present challenges faced by higher educational institutions due to the multiplicity of regulators having non-harmonised regulatory approval protocols will be done away with.
The higher education commission, which will be headed by a chairperson appointed by the President of India, will cover all central universities and colleges under it, institutes of national importance functioning under the administrative purview of the Ministry of Education, including IITs, NITs, IISc, IISERs, IIMs, and IIITs.
At present, IITs and IIMs are not regulated by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
Government to refer bill to JPC; Oppn slams it
The government has expressed its willingness to refer it to a joint committee after several members of the Lok Sabha expressed strong opposition to the Bill, stating that they were not given time to study its provisions.
Responding to the opposition, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the government intends to refer the Bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed examination.
Congress Lok Sabha MP Manish Tewari warned that the Bill could result in “excessive centralisation” of higher education. He argued that the proposed law violates the constitutional division of legislative powers between the Union and the states.
According to him, the Bill goes beyond setting academic standards and intrudes into areas such as administration, affiliation, and the establishment and closure of university campuses. These matters, he said, fall under Entry 25 of the Concurrent List and Entry 32 of the State List, which cover the incorporation and regulation of state universities.
Tewari further stated that the Bill suffers from “excessive delegation of legislative power” to the proposed commission. He pointed out that crucial aspects such as accreditation frameworks, degree-granting powers, penalties, institutional autonomy, and even the supersession of institutions are left to be decided through rules, regulations, and executive directions. He argued that this amounts to a violation of established constitutional principles governing delegated legislation.
Under the Bill, the regulatory council will have the power to impose heavy penalties on higher education institutions for violating provisions of the Act or related rules. Penalties range from ₹10 lakh to ₹75 lakh for repeated violations, while establishing an institution without approval from the commission or the state government could attract a fine of up to ₹2 crore.
Concerns were also raised by members from southern states over the Hindi nomenclature of the Bill. N.K. Premachandran, an MP from the Revolutionary Socialist Party representing Kollam in Kerala, said even the name of the Bill was difficult to pronounce.
He pointed out that under Article 348 of the Constitution, the text of any Bill introduced in Parliament must be in English unless Parliament decides otherwise.
DMK MP T.M. Selvaganapathy also criticised the government for naming laws and schemes only in Hindi. He said the Constitution clearly mandates that the nomenclature of a Bill should be in English so that citizens across the country can understand its intent.
Congress MP S. Jothimani from Tamil Nadu’s Karur constituency described the Bill as another attempt to impose Hindi and termed it “an attack on federalism.”
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