The Hindu : Karnataka News : `Govt. has been well managed'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, May 28, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka

`Govt. has been well managed'

T.S. Ranganna

`Had there been more cohesion between the Congress and the JD(S), the Government could have excelled'

Gopal K. Kadekodi

BANGALORE: "The coalition Government headed by the Chief Minister, N. Dharam Singh, in the past year has been well managed and its performance balanced in most sectors despite the fact that two powerful parties of almost equal strength who worked against each other till the other day are running the show," according to the Director of the Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC), Gopal K. Kadekodi.

Evaluating the performance of the Government thus, he, however, said, "Had there been more cohesion between the Congress and the Janata Dal (S), the Government could have excelled."

Prof. Kadekodi, who served as a member of the High-level Committee on Regional Imbalances headed by the economist D.M. Nanjundappa, said the most notable achievement of the Government is the attention given to the agricultural sector while promoting information technology and biotechnology. The second major achievement has been the commendable job done by the Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister, Siddaramaiah, in maintaining fiscal discipline. As the Finance Minister, he has taken the lead in raising tax revenues, bringing in transparency and introducing tax reforms and accountability in the devolution of financial powers to the urban local bodies and panchayat raj institutions, Prof. Kadekodi said.

Lauding the efforts of Mr. Dharam Singh, who also holds the Home portfolio, the ISEC Director said, "Karnataka is an open State unlike many North Indian States. Any citizen can come and start his or her business or industry without any obstacle or opposition from any quarter. There has been no major law and order problem in his one-year administration except the naxal uprising."

Expressing his unhappiness over the lack of commitment in allocating more resources for promoting technological development and generating employment in the backward districts, Prof. Kadekodi said the Government needs to emphasise this issue in the coming months. In fact, issues such as the naxal problem can be attributed to the backwardness of certain regions.

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