Governor hails govt for effective tackling of drought

Bengaluru, dhns: Governor Vajubhai R Vala on Wednesday hailed the HD Kumaraswamy-led administration for “timely measures” to tackle drought, even as the Opposition BJP has made the calamity its tool to target the Congress-JD(S) coalition.

“It is a matter of concern that 100 talukas during Kharif 2018 and 156 talukas during Rabi 2018 are affected by drought. My government has initiated timely measures to ensure drinking water supply, fodder availability and create employment in these talukas,” Vala stated in his address to the joint session of the legislature.

Vala ended his address abruptly amid sloganeering by the BJP. He started reading his speech at 11.05 am.
Five minutes later, Vala moved to the final page and read the concluding part of the speech.

The government, Vala said, was working on a long-term action plan to tackle drought. This includes micro-irrigation systems, rainwater harvesting, zero budget natural farming and use of Israeli technology in agriculture.

Kumaraswamy’s pet crop loan waiver got thumbs-up from Vala saying its implementation was “in right earnest.” Vala said the government had released Rs 1,611 crore towards crop loans of 3.28 lakh farmers till January 31, 2019.

Bengaluru’s startup ecosystem, Vala stated, is currently valued at $19 billion. “By 2025, the number of startups in the state in likely to touch 20,000.” Also, the government had approved 1,958 industrial projects worth Rs 3.49 lakh crore with a potential to create 10.28 lakh jobs, Vala stated.

The governor said the government was committed to offering English education in state-run schools, a decision that has become controversial.

“In today’s competitive environment, it is imperative to equip students who pursue education in government schools with adequate skills, for them to compete and excel not only at state-level, but also at the global-level.

Hence, my government is committed to start English medium in government schools so that bright minds from poorer sections of society are not disadvantaged due to lack of English knowledge,” Vala stated.

In his 2018-19 budget, Kumaraswamy had promised starting 1,000 government schools where English would be the medium of instruction. This has come under severe criticism by Kannada activists and litterateurs.

“However, the primacy of Kannada will not be compromised with,” Vala stated. “My government has sanctioned and released funds for a project cost of Rs 450 crore for upgrading infrastructure in government schools.”