BELAGAVI: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said it was not possible to shift government departments from Bengaluru to Belagavi as the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha here was flawed in design.
His remark drew protests from Leader of the Opposition Jagadish Shettar and YSV Datta of the JD(S). The BJP and JD(S) claim credit for building the grand structure. Replying to J G Patil (Congress) during the Question Hour, Siddaramaiah said, “Though `450 crore has been spent on the Soudha, it is not well-planned. The rooms designed for the chief secretary and principal secretaries are too small.”
He said it was also not practical to shift departmental offices from Bengaluru because the legislature wing occupied major space.
“However, meetings of various Cabinet sub-committees and legislature committees, besides review meetings of various departments, are being held here to make good use of the structure,” Siddaramaiah said.
Shettar and Datta urged him to make modifications to the Suvarna Soudha.
Otherwise it would be grossly under-utilised and not serve the people of northern Karnataka, they said. Siddaramaiah assured them he would consider their suggestions and take appropriate action.
Karnataka built the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha to assert its control over Belagavi, a city Maharashtra has been coveting.
The Suvarna Soudha was inaugurated in October 2012 by President Pranab Mukherjee when Shettar was the chief minister.