Southern States - Karnataka   

Krishna hints at Ministry reshuffle

By Our Staff Reporter

Bangalore Jan. 1. The Karnataka Chief Minister, S.M. Krishna, today said that he might go in for a reshuffle of the Ministry after the new president of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) is appointed.

Mr. Krishna told presspersons that Ministry reshuffle was a continuous exercise. The AICC general secretary, Vayalar Ravi, had already said that the KPCC president, Allum Veerabhadrappa, would be replaced.

Mr. Krishna agreed that the time had come for effecting changes. Asked whether it was on the cards, he said: "I do not hold the crystal ball. Your guess is as good as mine."

Mr. Krishna, who termed last year's experience as nightmarish, said he wanted to improve administration and combat corruption.

He also had to take some political decisions. "I will lead the Government from the front," he added.

He said the people would gauge the performance of the Government and how fast and how meaningfully it worked.

He would review the performance of every department, he said, but refused to call it an examination to assess the capabilities of Ministers. He said all his Ministers were "capable of delivering the goods." The Ministers and legislators knew their responsibilities, and ultimately, the people would judge them.

The Chief Minister indirectly cautioned that his Government would take tough decisions, as soft options would not work. Asked what happened to the review of the Ministers' performance by the party, Mr. Krishna said it had a self-regulatory mechanism. "We have been reviewing the performance of the departments," he added.

"Let us start with a note of optimism, hope, and with a note of self-confidence. There will be no let-up in the crusade against corruption," he said.

More powers for Lok Ayukta

Asked about the progress made by the high-power committee against corruption in administration, Mr. Krishna said the institution of the Lok Ayukta would be strengthened. He did not reply when asked why the committee had not met.

He said that a national conference of the Lokayuktas would be held here on January 17, and he had been invited to it.

Pending Bills

Asked about the tardy progress in the implementation of the Department of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj, he said certain Bills pertaining to it were pending before the Legislature.

Referring to the strained relations with Tamil Nadu, he said it would improve automatically, if it rained. He hoped that this year the State would receive good rains and help in development.

Mr. Krishna said the State would introduce the VAT from April.

It had received less than 50 per cent of the loan disbursements from the World Bank, and the rest of the funds were expected, he added.

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