JOIN USNew Lokayukta Bill gets Cabinet nod
The State Cabinet is understood to have given its nod for the new Lokayukta bill for Karnataka, on the lines of the Lokpal bill.
The State government is likely to introduce the bill in the Legislative Assembly on Monday. The chief minister and all Cabinet ministers will also come under the purview of the new bill. Besides, the bill seeks to set up a multi-disciplinary body for conducting investigation into cases of corruption, sources said.
The Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah also decided to extend the Yeshasvini health insurance scheme to all urban cooperative societies. An estimated 75 lakh members of urban cooperative societies are eligible to avail themselves of the scheme, which is likely to come into effect on April 1, sources added.
The Cabinet is learnt to have fixed Rs 1,000 as annual premium for members of urban cooperative societies under the scheme, which provides health insurance cover up to Rs 2 lakh in a year. The media was not briefed about the Cabinet decisions.
The Cabinet also gave its nod to the construction of a super-speciality veterinary hospital in Bangalore at a cost of Rs 8 crore and three speciality veterinary hospitals in Tumkur, Gulbarga and Belgaum at a cost of Rs 3.4 crore each.
Approval was also given for tenders to take up the construction of medical college buildings at Gadag, Gulbarga and Kodagu.
The Cabinet is learnt to have cleared a number of lift irrigation and drinking water projects with an eye on the coming Lok Sabha polls.
These include Rs 2,488-crore Babaleshwar-Tubachi lift irrigation project, Rs 1,530-crore Nandawad lift-irrigation project and Rs 277-crore drinking water project for Kunigal and Magadi taluks.