by reciprocal arrangement with Star of Mysore

Bangalore, Mar 13:  'Information Technology and Biotech majors have threatened to move out of Bangalore, due to lack of basic infrastructure. Let them go. Bangalore does not stand to lose because of their quitting,' thundered noted litterateur Dr. U.R. Ananthamurthy.

He was speaking after inaugurating the Women Empowerment Movement in Little Flower Convent held under the auspices of International Human Development and Advancement Centre here yesterday.

It is a loss if pregnant women succumb due to lack of proper medical treatment and it is also a loss if anybody's child loses its life following dehydration. On a totally different plane, the IT and BT majors have threatened to walk out of the city. Let them do so and no loss from it, argued Dr. Ananthamurthy.

Chief of Biocon, Bangalore Kiran Majumdar Shah said that her company would not plan further expansion in the city, because not only Bangalore was losing its competitiveness due to falling standards of basic infrastructure but also the State Government was not extending cooperation.

'India is in a chaotic state. There is also the fear of losing the country's freedom. That may happen due to globalisation too. US President Bush came to India and his purpose was to promote business. He waged war against Iraq for the sake of oil and in future, wars will be fought over water, ' Dr. Ananthamurthy opined.

'We should eschew evils such as liquor for votes, not recovering loans, squandering money meant for redeeming loans and the likes, which is hindering the progress' he opined.

'If only Mahatma Gandhi was alive today, it would not have been possible to use money power and liquor power and winning elections would have become that much difficult,' he lamented.

'Our ideal of the 1950s was that of an educated youth returning to his village as described in the publication Marali Mannige authored by litterateur Dr. Shivarama Karanth, he said.