JOIN USHeggade stresses need for common dress code
“Uniformity in dress gives a different ambience in the classrooms. It reflects both social and economic equality,” he said during a Meet the Press programme organised by DK Union of Working Journalists at Patrika Bhavan here on Wednesday.
“Religion is something personal. It should be practiced in home. It should not come in between the social life,” Heggade said.
Answering a query on the incident at SVS College in Bantwal, he said: “You should not generalise an action taken by a principal. If an incident is reported from somewhere, it does not mean that such a trend is there everywhere. It is a rare incident.”
River diversion
Replying to a query on the Nethravathi river diversion project, Heggade opined: “It is an unscientific effort”.
The authorities who envisaged the project have failed to give its complete details to the people. Even the engineers concerned who visited Dharmasthala a few years back tried to convince us, but were not in a condition to give sufficient proof as to how it works, he explained.
SEZ a good concept
Heggade said special economic zone is certainly a good concept but questions arise only on the pattern of its implementation.
“Changes are inevitable in the economic scenario for the development of any country. It requires concentrated efforts,” he said.
RUDSETI nationwide
Inspired by the development model envisaged by the Rural Development and Self Employment Training Institute (RUDSETI), the Central government has passed an order that the branches of RUDSETI should be established in all districts. A RUDSET Academy has been established in Bangalore an year ago, funded by the Centre, Heggade informed.
The State government has agreed to allot 5 acre-land in Bangalore for the academy’s campus, he added. He said the 24th branch of the institute will be opened at Rajasthan soon.
Banking in villages
Heggade said the Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala Rural Development Project (SKDRDP) has initiated banking correspondence model in Dharwad, Gadag and Haveri.
“In this model, there will be a direct transaction between the bank and the beneficiary. The bank representative will take laptop to the villages and encourage the people to open their accounts. They are registered through biometric system and are given smart cards,” he explained.
The SKDRDP has more than 11,50,000 members in 9 districts. As many as two lakh members have enrolled with the project in the last six months. The new type of banking will be gradually expanded to other districts, he said.
Answering a query, Heggade said the SKDRDP will be extended to Hyderabad-Karnataka region in course of time.
Tulu convention
He said the world Tulu convention to be held at Ujire from December 10 will not just be a conference of Tulu language and literature but will be a forum to discuss the blueprint for the integrated development of the region.
Asked about his opinion on the inclusion of Tulu in the VIII Schedule of the Constitution, he said the people who speak a lot about the issue have not done much to show that why the language should be included in the VIII Schedule.
DK Union of Working Journalists President Harsha and General Secretary Guruvappa T N Balepuni were present.