BELAGAVI: Several organisations, including Uttara Karnataka Horata Samiti and Uttara Karnataka Vikas Vedike, staged a protest in front of the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha in Belagavi on Tuesday demanding comprehensive development of North Karnataka.
They urged the state government to announce a special development package for Kittur Karnataka on the lines of Kalyana Karnataka and to officially declare Belagavi the second capital of Karnataka.
They insisted on constituting a Kittur Karnataka Development Authority to accelerate growth in the seven districts of the region.
They also demanded that the government secretariat departments and state-level offices be permanently set up at Suvarna Vidhana Soudha to ensure year-round administrative activity instead of limiting its use to the winter session. They further urged the government to hold at least two to three cabinet meetings annually in Belagavi.
To boost economic growth and create jobs, they stressed the importance of establishing an international airport in Belagavi and developing an industrial and IT ecosystem to benefit skilled youth. They warned that if the government fails to include North Karnataka’s development roadmap in the winter session scheduled in December, massive protests would be launched during the session.