Laptops for MLAs

Assembly Speaker Kagodu Thimmappa said on Tuesday that every sitting MLA would be given a one-time financial assistance of Rs 60,000 for buying a laptop of their choice.

With as many as 225 MLAs, the State exchequer is likely to spend Rs 1.34 crore for the purpose. It is said that a proposal in this regard has been sent to the Finance Department for its approval. The MLAs are expected to submit a receipt of their purchase to the Assembly Secretariat.

While in terms of technology laptops may be a demotion from the iPads, which the previous batch of MLAs received during the BJP tenure, Thimmappa defended the move saying that it was an effort to make the legislators move with the times. On whether the legislators had made use of the iPads provided five years ago, Thimmappa said he sincerely hoped that the MLAs would use them for keeping themselves abreast of technology.