BENGALURU: Hailing the many initiatives and achievements of the Narendra Modi government 2.0 as it completes one year, Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa deemed the Prime Minister a ‘Kayaka Yogi’. Even as he spelt out various reforms, including the abolition of triple talaq, Citizenship Amendment Act, and abrogation of Article 370, Yediyurappa acknowledged that funds to Karnataka had been reduced, and hoped that the Centre would extend more financial assistance.
“State and central governments, as you know well, are facing a financial problem. I am 100 per cent confident that the Union government will release more money to Karnataka,” Yediyurappa responded to a question raised by TNIE over pending dues from the Centre. Giving the Modi wave full credit for the victory of 25 BJP MPs from Karnataka in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Yediyurappa said even heavyweights like Mallikarjuna Kharge, HD Deve Gowda and KH Muniyappa have washed away.
“Modi’s decision has played a decisive role in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic in India. He has competently handled the huge challenge of combating a pandemic in a country with a population of 130 crore. He implemented the most stringent lockdown restrictions in the world to control the spread of Covid-19, and achieved remarkable success. India has been noticed globally for the measures it undertook to fight the virus,” Yediyurappa said, as he highlighted the economic stimulus package announced by the Union government as well as relief package announced by his government in Karnataka.
Yediyurappa listed Rs 1,869 crore as flood relief, inauguration of Kalaburagi airport, development of Shivamogga airport, approval and token allocation of Rs 1 crore towards the Bengaluru suburban train project, assistance for national highway development, announcement of Rs 3,085 crore for Belagavi-Dharwad, Mysuru-Kushalnagar, Shikaripura-Ranebennur railway lines, Rs 485 crore for a railway coach factory at Kolar, and assurance of doubling and electrification of all rail routes in Karnataka before 2022, as Modi 2.0 government’s contributions to Karnataka.