BENGALURU: Chief Minister DK Shivakumar here on Saturday claimed that none other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi has appreciated the former for his idea of creation of townships to decongest big cities like Bengaluru.
Shivakumar, who returned from New Delhi after taking part in NITI Aayog’s meeting and a meeting with Modi, was replying to a query on Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy’s warning to the state government that he will launch a legal battle besides protests against the Bidadi township project.
“I wish them (JDS and HDK) good luck. We are implementing the townships that were initiated by Kumaraswamy in the past. Yesterday I met the Prime Minister and the PM told me that he had developed 7 to 8 townships himself, and said, ‘DK you are doing a good job, the pressure on Bengaluru needs to be reduced.’ He (Modi) gave me that advice, and keeping that in mind, we are proceeding,” he said.
Shivakumar’s predecessor Siddaramaiah had been skipping the NITI Aayog meetings in the past.
“Reflecting all of your sentiments, I attended and participated in the meeting. I have conveyed my perspective, and they have responded positively to it. You can check with the other state ministers who were present, or even those who criticise us; they will tell you how the Prime Minister accepted my thoughts, the examples he cited, and how he agreed with what I said,” he claimed with a huge smile.
He admitted that he said at the meeting that the people of Karnataka prospered because of the Five Guarantees.
“Look, those who criticised our Guarantee Schemes have ultimately replicated them across the entire nation now,” he said, adding that it makes Karnataka proud to feel about it.