JOIN USChief Minister Siddaramaiah appears to be uncomfortable talking about the Centre’s recent decision to do away with red beacon lights for all ministers, bureaucrats and jugdes.
“Why are you after red beacon?” he retorted on Tuesday when reporters sought to know whether he has got the red beacon removed from his vehicle.
When his attention was drawn to the missing beacon on his official vehicle, he said: “We have not received any notification from the Centre yet. We will look into it and take appropriate measures after the notification is received.”
Food and Civil Supplies Minister U T Khader, who still has a red beacon on his official vehicle, said he does not have powers to order its removal. “I am not the owner of the vehicle. It is given by the government. Hence, the government will take a decision on removing the beacon.”
Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy and Water Resources Minister M B Patil had, however, welcomed the Centre’s decision. Some of the ministers, including Reddy and Agriculture Minister Krishna Byre Gowda, have already done away with red beacons.