Ullal?Srinivas Mallya Circle to be inaugurated today

A circle, dedicated to Ullal Srinivas Mallya, will be inaugurated at Padil Junction in Mangaluru on Thursday.

Nitte deemed to be University Chancellor N Vinay Hegde will inaugurate the 'Ullal Srinivas Mallya Circle' at Padil Junction today at 5 pm. MP Nalin Kumar Kateel and MLA J R Lobo will unveil the plaque of late Ullal Srinivas Mallya Circle.

Mangaluru Mayor Bhaskar K will be the guest of honour while Corporator B Prakash will be the chief guest.

The dream to have a junction named after the architect of development of post-independent South Kanara was realised by the efforts of World Konkani Kendra and Konkani Linguistic and Cultural Foundation.

Inspired by Mahatma Gandhi, an 18-year-old Srinivas Mallya, plunged into the Indian freedom movement in the early 1920s after giving up a lucrative family business. Mallya inspired people of the district to join the Gandhian struggle for Independence of India.

Ullal Srinivas Mallya got elected to the Lok Sabha thrice from Dakshina Kannada. Post-Independence, when the Central Government planned to connect Kanyakumari with Kashmir by road, Mallya saw to it that National Highway 17 would pass through the entire west coast of Karnataka and was successful in putting up more than a dozen bridges over the rivers which were otherwise hindering the travel.

His contributions to the district include Mangalore airport, All India Radio, Karnataka Regional Engineering College (now known as NITK), Town Hall, circuit house, Mangalore-Hasan railway line, NH No 42 connecting MangaluruHassan-Bangaluru, New Mangalore Port and Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilisers.

Ullal Srinivas Mallya never aspired for ministerial berths or any office even when he was a powerful political figure.

He died on December 19, 1965.

The World Konkani Centre has urged the Ministry of Civil Aviation to name the Mangaluru International Airport after Ullal Srinivas Mallya.