Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly Jagadish Shettar on Monday maintained that it was essential for the government to assuage the “feeling of neglect” among the people of north Karnataka to protect the unity of the State.
Participating in a discussion on issues related to development of north Karnataka, Mr. Shettar said such a feeling had emerged as the northern region lagged not just in infrastructure development, but also in human development indices.
Malnutrition, poverty, school dropout rates and even migration of people is high in northern districts, he said.
Review panelHe said a high-level committee should be constituted to review implementation of the Dr. Nanjudappa panel report on removing regional imbalances in the State, headed by either a retired High Court judge or an economist.
Pointing out that the panel report had recommended spending Rs. 31,000 crore, including a special grant of Rs. 16,000 crore, for the development of north Karnataka over eight years, Mr. Shettar said it was time to review the implementation of the recommendations.
Meanwhile, a Congress MLA displayed maize in the House to draw attention to the issue of the Centre declining to fund the State’s proposal to procure maize through market intervention by offering minimum support price on the grounds that the crop was not part of the public distribution system.
