The state government will launch the 'Vinaya Samarasya' campaign aimed at creating awareness against the practice of untouchability from next month. The campaign will be held at the gram panchayat level, said Minister for Social Welfare and Backward Classes Kota Srinivas Poojary.
He was speaking to mediapersons after receiving petitions from the general public. "The programme aims at creating untouchability free gram panchayats. There are plans to inaugurate the programme through Prime Minister Narendra Modi."
The campaign is named after a two-year-old Dalit boy Vinay from Koppal, whose parents were penalised after the toddler entered a local temple. While implementing the campaign, SC/ST convention will be held in all the districts. The convention will be organised with the support of the social justice committee in all the 6,020 gram panchayats in the state. If a gram panchayat becomes free of untouchability, then a cash prize of Rs 25 lakh to Rs 50 lakh will also be awarded, he said.
Kota Srinivas Poojary said that the government will construct five Deendayal Upadhyay hostels in the state. Each of the hostels will accommodate 1,000 students and they will be built at an estimated cost of Rs 250 crore by spending Rs 50 crore for each hostel, he said. There are plans to set up the hostels on the university premises itself in Mangaluru, Mysuru, Shivamogga, Dharwad and Davangere.
He said students from all the communities have been asked to be admitted in the hostels run by the social welfare and backward classes department. Last year, 2 lakh students were admitted to 2400 hostels in the state. Of whom, 1.20 lakh children have availed assistance under the Vidyasiri programme. Additional 125 students were given hostel facilities at Bejai and Jeppinamogaru, he added. This year also the state will not face a shortage of hostels, he said to a query. As many as 50 Kanakadasa hostels will be constructed in the state. In addition, the government will build 100 B R Ambedkar residential schools for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the state, he said. Narayana Guru residential schools will be built in Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Uttara Kannada and Shivamogga districts at an estimated cost of Rs 29 crore, he added.
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