Environmentalist Salumarada Thimmakka said on Monday that the State Government should keep its promise to set up a hospital in her village of Hulikal in Magadi taluk of Bangalore Rural district.
Ms. Thimmakka, who had come to participate in the inaugural function of Students’ Forum at the Government First Grade College at Hiriyadka village in Udupi district, told presspersons that there were about 3,500 people residing in Hulikal. She had been urging the State Government for the last eight years to set up a government hospital there.
“But the Government has not responded to my demand,” she said.
Replying to a question, Ms. Thimmakka said that she had planted 800 saplings in Hulikal village along with her husband the late Chikkanna.
She said that she was suffering from health problems such as diabetes and blood pressure.
Other than the old age pension of Rs. 400 per month, she got nothing from the Government.
Fit and fine
Asked how she looked fit and fine, Ms. Thimmakka, who claims to be 100 years old, said: “I eat ‘ragi mudde’ twice a day”.
Her adopted grandson Ballur Umesh, who was with her, said that the Government should do something for Thimmakka when she was alive.
But it only kept giving her false assurances. When B.S. Yeddyurappa became Chief Minister, he had sanctioned a house in Surya city area of Bangalore and a hospital for Hulikal village in recognition of Ms. Thimmakka’s work.
D.V. Sadananda Gowda, who succeeded Mr. Yeddyurappa as the Chief Minister, sanctioned an amount of Rs. 5 lakh to Ms. Thimmakka. “But Ms. Thimmakka did not get the house, the hospital or the money,” he said.
Mr. Umesh said that he wanted to install a bronze statue of Ms. Thimmakka at Cubbon Park or Lal Bagh in Bangalore. But the Government was not giving land at either place.
“I have asked the Government to give land in some other place for the statue. If the Government hospital comes up at Hulikal, I want to install her statue there,” he said.
Mr. Umesh said that he had a target of planting one crore saplings. He had already planted one lakh saplings in lands of farmers, schools and other public places in many villages, he said.
