The Karnataka government on Tuesday went on a spree appointing chairpersons of various corporations, five in all. Four of them are corporations for specific caste groups.
B.S. Paramashivaiah has been appointed chairman of the newly-formed Karnataka Veerashaiva-Lingayat Development Corporation (KVLDC) for all-round development of the politically influential community in the State. The government released ₹500 crore for the corporation on Monday.
Mr. Paramashivaiah, 80, resident of Vijayanagara in Bengaluru, heads Karnataka Veerashaiva Vidyabhivrudhi Samsthe. Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa, who belongs to the community, ordered the formation of the corporation following pressure from legislators belonging to the dominant community.
The government also appointed Raghu R. (Kautilya) of Mysuru as chairman of D. Devaraj Urs Backward Classes Development Corporation, while Babu Pattar of Bengaluru is chairman of the Karnataka Vishwakarma Community Development Corporation.
G.K. Girish Uppar of Kadur in Chikkamagaluru district has been appointed head of Karnataka Uppara Development Corporation and S Naresh Kumar of Jayanagar in Bengaluru as the chairman of the Savitha Samaj Development Corporation, according to a government notification.
Vokkaligas’ demand
Meanwhile, on the heels of corporations set up for Marathas and Veerashaivas, pressure has begun to mount from various communities to set up corporations for their upliftment.
C.N. Ashwath Narayan, Deputy Chief Minister and Vokkaliga leader, demanded that the State government set up a development corporation for Vokkaliga community, on the lines of Lingayats and Marathas.
Speaking to journalists at Belagavi, he said the State government should focus on all communities equally.
“It should set up a development corporation for Vokkaligas just as it has done for Lingayats and Marathas,” the Deputy Chief Minister said.
OPTIONAL CUT: He urged Kannada organisations not to oppose the proposed Maratha Development Corporation. “Marathas are also Kannadigas. A body to develop the community should not be opposed.”
Meanwhile, a delegation led by Kannada activist Talakadu Chikkarange Gowda on Tuesday submitted a memorandum to Mr. Yediyurappa, appealing to him to set up a corporation for the development of the Vokkaliga community.
OPTIONAL CUT: The delegation, which comprised BJP leader A. H. Anand among others, said that most of the community members were living under difficult conditions as their main occupation was agriculture. Similarly, 80% of the land that had been acquired in Bengaluru city either for the development of residential layouts or infrastructure projects belonged to the Vokkaliga community members.
