Karnataka CM Yediyurappa turns guardian angel for this youth again
BENGALURU: For little Vishwanath from a slum in Bengaluru, life changed in 2010. Thanks to then Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa who noticed him and later took care of his education expenses. Now after 10 years, life changed again for the young Vishwanath (20) who got a ‘government job’, thanks to CM BSY again. Vishwanath, who was unemployed for sometime, recently went to see the CM at his official residence seeking a job.
“The CM was not there and his staff told me to wait. Ka Pu Siddalinga Swamy, who has been associated with Yediyurappa for a long time, recognised me. Swamy used to take care of me those days as CM had instructed him to. I told him that I was looking for a job. Later, I got one, thanks to the CM,’’ Vishwanath told The New Indian Express.
Siddalinga Swamy too said he recognised Vishwanath. “As per the CM’s instruction, he was given a recommendation letter and he got a contract job at KREDL,” he said. “If Vishwanath wants to study further, it will be taken care of. He has passed SSLC. If he graduates, he can get a better job,’’ he added.
CM got flats for residents of youth’s slum
Vishwanath is now working as an office attender in the Karnataka Renewable Energy Development Ltd (KREDL), Department of Energy, Government of Karnataka.KREDL Managing Director HB Budeppa said the department had one attender post vacant. “As per his qualification, we have given him that post at a salary of Rs 14,800 per month, including ESI and PF.”
In July 2019, when Yediyurappa became CM, TNIE had carried an article about Vishwanath – ‘“Yediyurappa’s visit changed the life of 180 families in this Bengaluru slum.” Recently when Vishwanath went to meet CM at his official residence, he showed him the TNIE article which helped him
to connect.
In 2010, one day during the rainy season, 10-year-old Vishwanath was outside Gali Anjaneya temple on Mysuru road selling flowers. He saw CM Yediyurappa there and tried to meet him out of curiosity. When the policemen did not allow him to enter, he went to the other side and jumped over the compound wall. There were policemen there too, who started yelling at him. That’s when Yediyurappa noticed Vishwanath, who was then in class fifth at a government school.
“I told him to visit our slum. Whenever it poured, water would enter our huts and we would spend sleepless nights. He promised me that he would visit soon,” Vishwanath recalled.
The CM also told the boy that he would take care of his education and other expenses. As promised, Yediyurappa not only visited his slum, took care of his education expenses, but also got multi-storeyed flats built for the slum dwellers where Vishwanath used to reside.