The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : ‘Lobby for more funds for Hyderabad Karnataka region’

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Friday, Jul 13, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

‘Lobby for more funds for Hyderabad Karnataka region’

Staff Reporter

Meeting calls for increased allocation to most backward taluks

Meeting of legislators and political workers from the region held
Discrimination alleged in sanctioning high schools and junior colleges

Bangalore: Abdul Aziz, Member of the High Power Committee for Redressal of Regional Imbalances (commonly known as the D.M. Nanjundappa Committee), on Wednesday called upon the people of the Hyderbad Karnataka districts, including peoples representatives, to strongly lobby for allocating more funds to the region.

He was addressing a meeting of legislators and political workers from the region organised by B.R. Patil and Vaijnath Patil, MLAs, and Maruthi Manpade, president of the Karnataka Prantha Raitha Sangha.

Prof. Aziz, an economist, said the committee had fixed a ratio of 50:30:20 for allocating funds to most backward, medium backward and backward taluks and that the depravation index was the criterion. But, the State Government had earmarked funds in the ratio of 60:24:16 to these categories, which did a great injustice to Gulbarga division.

He said that the committee wanted the Government to spend an additional Rs. 16,000 crore over a period of eight years commencing from 2004, but the recommendations were implemented this year. If the inflation rate of five per cent a year was taken into consideration, it should go up to Rs. 1,920 crore as against Rs. 1,571 crore allocated in the budget and it should increase progressively every year.

Law and Home Minister M.P. Prakash spoke. T.R. Chandrasekhar, social activist, spoke. Mallikarjuna Kharge, president of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee was present.

Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly N. Dharam Singh charged the Government with narrow mindedness as far as the most backward regions of the State are concerned, which called for a united and strong protest. Echoing the opinion of Mr. Patil, he said that the discrimination in sanctioning high schools and junior colleges to the Hyderabad Karnataka region reflected the mindset of the coalition Government.

He alleged that the impetus given to the development of Hyderabad Karnataka region by the late R. Gundu Rao Government was diluted during the tenure of the Ramakrishna Hegde Government when he created various development boards.

Shashil G. Namoshi, MLC of Bharatiya Janata Party, said that Deputy Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa, who also holds the finance portfolio, had expressed his desire to correct the ratio and whatever change was made in the budget was unintentional. The meeting passed a resolution demanding the Government to change the ratio for increased allocation to the most backward taluks.

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