Pics: Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (DV)
Mangalore, May 31: In his first visit to the district after assuming the post of union railway minister, D V Sadananda Gowda on Saturday May 31 said that he felt extremely fortunate to work alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his cabinet.
Addressing party workers at the BJP district office here, Sadananda Gowda said, "This is my life's most extraordinary moment. It is my good fortune to get an opportunity to work with Narendra Modi in his cabinet. People had wished to see a change in the country, wished to see Modi become the PM. With the blessings of the people this wish has come true.
"With the help of BJP workers and the Sangh Parivar, this change has taken place. This has been possible Modi ke naam par, Sangh ke kaam par (in Modi's name, on Sangh Parivar's work)," he declared.
"Before the cabinet formation, I received a call from Modi at 9 pm and he told me to come to Gujarat Bhavan. It was a great moment and I felt my life was fulfilled. A man who wandered near railway tracks is now the railway minister. Only two persons have got opportunity to present the budget - Modi and I. This is all because of the blessings of the people of Dakshina Kannada," he said.
Remembering C G Kamath, Dr V S Acharya and Karamballi Sanjeeva Shetty, Sadananda Gowda said, "When I was the chief minister Dr V S Acharya guided me and hence I was able to succeed as CM. I promise to work sincerely, without any corruption, and I will not do anything that would tarnish the image of DK.
"The responsibility given to me is huge. The railway sector has 13.2 lac people working in it, and to study this sector thoroughly I need a month," he added.
"I will bring innovation into railways. I will mainly focus on the four S - safety, service, security, and then speed. Modi has already proposed bringing speed trains and bullet trains. I will work all 365 days," he said.
Commenting on his predecessor, former railway minister Mallikarjuna Kharge, he said, "Kharge has put a burden on me. He announced an increase of 10 percent hike in railway tariff and 5 percent hike on freight, but these were not implemented. I need to find a way around this."
On the purpose of his visit, he turned emotional and said, "I came here to seek the blessings of my mother who is 91 years old."
On the occasion, Sanjeeva Matandoor read out 10 demands for Dakshina Kannada railway, including formation of separate Mangalore division. Responding to the demands, Sadananda Gowda said that he will support the demands and work towards their fulfilment, but people should not expect immediate results.
Mangalore MP Nalin Kumar Kateel traced the journey of Sadananda Gowda from humble beginnings to his elevation as the union minister. "This has proved that RSS ideology can make a common man can rise to great heights; Modi and Sadananda Gowda are examples. The people of Dakshina Kannada hope to see Sadananda Gowda become the PM some day," he added.
He also said that pending works on overbridges at Padil and Jeppu- Kutpady will completed soon.
"We have been demanding a separate railway division for Mangalore. God has opened this opportunity for us by making Sadananda Gowda the railway minister," he added.
BJP district president Pratap Simha Nayak also spoke on the occasion.
Capt Ganesh Karnik, Rukmayya Poojary, Padmanabha Kottari, Nagaraj Shetty and others were present.