The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Study tour: corporators ready to bear expenses

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Aug 13, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Study tour: corporators ready to bear expenses

By Our Staff Reporter

BANGALORE, AUG. 12. The Congress corporators in the Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) Council are so determined to go on the proposed nation-wide study tour that they are ready to pay for their tour expenses.

They will also try to persuade the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President, B. Janardhan Poojary, and the Chief Minister, N. Dharam Singh, to allow them to go on the tour.

A delegation of the Congress members, led by the ruling party leader in the Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) Council, H. Jayaram, will meet the two leaders on Friday.

`Poojary misled'

Mr. Jayaram told presspersons here on Thursday that Mr. Poojary had been misled by the "exaggerated" media reports that the Mahanagara Palike would spend crores of rupees on the tour.

"We will meet him and apprise him of the importance of the tour. This is not a foreign jaunt. The tour expenses of the 56 members of the eight standing committees will come to be about Rs. 24 lakhs and will not run into crores," he said.

Asserting that such study tours were a routine annual affair in the Mahanagara Palike, Mr. Jayaram said it was essential for corporators to visit other States and study the development activities there.

He said the city Congress MLAs had spoken to Mr. Poojary on this. "We will also persuade him and make him understand (the need for the tour).

"But if he still asks us not to go, we will tell him we will bear our own expenses," Mr. Jayaram said.

Pointing out that only 32 of the 64 Congress corporators were going on the tour, he said the Government's approval was also awaited.

Apology sought

Women corporators in the Mahanagara Palike Council have demanded an apology from the Bharathinagar MLA, Nirmal Surana, as his alleged supporters had ransacked the office of N. Indira, corporator from Sarvagnanagar, on Wednesday.

They alleged that Mr. Surana's supporters entered Ms. Indira's office and broke the chairs and tables.

"They also took some files and threw them down. Their grouse is that Ms. Indira had got tenders for works worth over Rs. 60 lakhs approved but had not started them yet.

"But they fail to understand that the works have stopped because of rain. It is unfortunate that women corporators are targeted like this," the Prakashnagar corporator, G. Padmavathy, said.

She said the women corporators would stage a dharna in front of the MLA's house if he did not apologise within two days. Mr. Jayaram added that all the other members would support the demonstration.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Karnataka

News Update

Stories in this Section

Study tour: corporators ready to bear expenses

Woman cheated into parting with her gold bangles

SFI activists stage protest

Two held, articles recovered

Residents panic after cylinder leak

Bank staff take part in dharna

Cable TV operators to stage protest

Water Adalat today

Around the City

In Bangalore Today