Siddaramaiah, DK Shivakumar express commitment to work unitedly for welfare of people of Karnataka
Bengaluru (PTI): After the announcement of their names as the new Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka respectively on Thursday, Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar both expressed their commitment to work unitedly for the welfare of the people of the State.
Ending days of suspense, the Congress today announced Siddaramaiah as the next Chief Minister of Karnataka and D K Shivakumar as his only deputy in the soon-to-formed cabinet.
"Our hands will always be united to protect the interests of Kannadigas. The Congress party will work as a family to deliver a pro-people, transparent, corruption-free governance and fulfill all our guarantees," Siddaramaiah said in a tweet with a picture of AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge raising his and Shivakumar's hand in a show of unity.
Shivakumar, who is also the state Congress President, tweeting the same picture said, "Karnataka's secure future and our people's welfare is our top priority, and we are united in guaranteeing that."
The two leaders, who were in a tight race for the top post, would take oath along with other ministers on May 20.
Hectic parleys were held on for the last couple of days to break the deadlock in deciding on the Congress's chief ministerial pick in Karnataka, with both the hopefuls -- Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar -- presenting their cases before the top brass.
In the May 10 elections to the 224-member Assembly, the Congress scored an emphatic victory by bagging 135 seats, while the ruling BJP and the former prime minister H D Deve Gowda-led Janata Dal (Secular) secured 66 and 19 seats respectively.
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Pro-chancellor of St Aloysius University, Fr Melwin J Pinto SJ passes away at 63
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Mangaluru: Fr Melwin J Pinto SJ, Pro-chancellor of St Aloysius University Rector of St Aloysius Institutions, and Vice President of Mangalore Jesuit Educational Society (MJES), breathed his last on Friday, April 10. He was 63.
Born in 1963, Fr Melwin Pinto completed his schooling and college education at St Aloysius before joining the Jesuit order on June 20, 1981. He was ordained as a Jesuit priest on April 14, 1997.
Over the years, he held several academic qualifications, including an MA in English, a Master’s degree in Education, and diplomas in psychology and counselling as well as school administration.
He began his career in education as headmaster of St Joseph’s Primary School and High School in Hassan, serving between 1996 and 1999.
He later founded St Joseph’s Indian PU College and served as its principal until 2007. He subsequently served as headmaster of St Aloysius High School, Mangaluru, from 2007 to 2011, and later as principal of St Joseph’s PU College, Hassan, until 2012.
Fr Melwin Pinto also worked with Vatican Communications and Radio in Rome, contributing to its English desk for Asia and Indian languages.
He later served as superior and director of Fatima Retreat House in Valencia for two years from May 2017, before being appointed as superior of the Jesuit study home ‘Vidyaniketan’ in Dharwad.
He was also closely associated with the development of St Aloysius Institutions and played a key role in securing the status of a Deemed-to-be University. His contribution to the education sector and efforts towards innovation were widely acknowledged. He was known for maintaining close relations with people from all sections of society.
Legislative Council MLA Ivan D’Souza, in a statement, said the demise of Fr Melwin J Pinto was a huge loss to the educational and religious fields and had created a significant void in society.
Dakshina Kannada District in-charge Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao also expressed grief, stating that his service and contributions to education would always be remembered.
Details regarding the funeral are yet to be announced.
