Republic Day parade: No tableau from Karnataka, after 13 years
Bengaluru: After 13 years, the tableau from Karnataka, which reflect the art and culture of the state, will not get a chance to shine in the Republic Day parade.
The Central government has turned down the proposal of the state to showcase Karnataka's millet diversity during the Republic Day parade on the Kartavya Path, state government officers have said.
Sources in the Department for Information and Public Relation have said that, while the assessment committee members had appreciated Karnataka's design and music in initial rounds, the state lost out at the final stage of selection, reports Times of India.
An official added that many states complained that they had been neglected for several years, with the committee giving opportunity to only a few states to present their tableaux.
Karnataka has won several awards for its tableaux and some of its themes were appreciated for their creativity and splendour. The state has focused on its rich cultural heritage, including folklore, handicrafts and biodiversity and was the runner-up last year, having presented the theme 'cradle of traditional handicrafts'.
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has revised the process of selection and also streamlined the number of tableaux presented during the Republic Day parade, following a strong criticism from Kerala and Telangana in 2022 for ignoring the proposals of many states.
“Unlike picking individual states as per the roster, the Centre categorised the country into several zones and picked two to three tableaux from each zone,” an MOD source has said.
As per the new selection format, Karnataka, along with four other states and three union territories, was a part of the Southern zone.
The MOD officer has said that, in contrast to the selection of 15 tableaux, this year, they selected the three best proposals from each zone that had eight states. Zones that had only four states were to present two tableaux each. The selection was carried out also on a proportionate formula, the officer has added.
The MOD has given priority to states and union territories that had the least opportunity to participate in the parade in the last eight years, the officer has explained.
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Manmohan Singh left 'big imprint' on country's economy: CM Siddaramaiah
Belagavi (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday said former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who passed away on December 26, has left a "big imprint" on the country's economy.
Calling him "the most respected man", the CM recalled Singh as a simple, gentleman and honest politician.
Singh, the architect of India's economic reforms, died in New Delhi on Thursday night. He was 92.
"Singh's life, in a way, is a miracle. He was born in a small village in today's Pakistan and went on to become one of the country's and the world's renowned economist. He was finance minister in Narasimha Rao cabinet and through liberalisation and privatisation, he opened up the Indian economy and there by resolved the financial crisis that the country was facing," Siddaramaiah said.
Speaking to reporters here, he said, in 2004, Sonia Gandhi chose Singh as the prime minister, the responsibility he held for ten years, uplifting the country both economically and socially.
"He is among the honest prime ministers the country has seen. He has left a big imprint on the country's economy. His life and work towards shaping the country's economy is an inspiration to all of us," he added.
Stating that Singh never had intoxication of power, Siddaramaiah said, he was a simple, gentleman and honest politician.
"He was the most respected man. He lived with dignity and respect in politics. Such a person has departed. His death is a big loss for India. I pray to the Almighty that he give strength to Singh's family, friends and well-wishers to bear the loss," he said.
Singh introduced the Food Security Act to ensure that the poor get food grains at a cheaper cost, the CM said, and added that, "after this law was enacted, I brought in a scheme in Karnataka to provide rice at Re 1 to poor, later that was changed to free 5 kg of rice."
"Today, if Narendra Modi-led NDA government is providing 5 kg of free rice to the poor the reason for it is Manmohan Singh. During Singh's tenure as PM he worked keeping in mind poor," he added.
Noting that he shared a good relationship with Singh as he was PM during his first stint as CM, Siddaramaiah said, he had lauded state's economy and government's schemes.
Singh's death was announced on Thursday night by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi, where he was admitted in the Emergency ward around 8.30 PM in a critical condition.
