Silvester D'Souza
Daijiworld Media Network – Kundapur

Kundapur, Jun 22: "The people of Byndoor were chiefly responsible for my landslide victory in the recent elections. Hence, I will give more importance to Byndoor than to my own constituency of Shikaripura. Apart from studying the problems dogging this constituency and finding solutions to them, I will also make an earnest effort to make Byndoor a model constituency," said Shimoga Lok Sabha MP and former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa.

He was addressing a thanksgiving programme organized by Byndoor BJP unit at JNR Kala Mandir, Byndoor here on Saturday June 21.

"During the elections, Narendra Modi had declared that we would build a Congress-free India, and for that he received much flak. However, the voters gave a revolutionary reply in the elections. Congress has lost the moral right to even sit in the opposition. NDA came to power without the support of any other party, and it will continue to be in absolute power for another 15-20 years, with Modi building and leading a strong India," he said.

He also urged the party workers to follow the example set by the party in Uttar Pradesh where it won 71 seats, and replicate that performance by winning 170 seats in Karnataka in the next elections.

"The government led by prime minister Narendra Modi is striving to get rid of the tag of 'corrupt nation' by working alongside other parties," he added.

Commenting on the hike in rail fare, he put the blame on former railway minister Mallikarjuna Kharge and said that the hike was proposed by him in the previous budget, and now it was necessary as Kharge had centralised the treasury in the previous budget, adding that need for improvement in railways had neccessitated the hike. As the financial situation in the country had worsened, the new government will have to face many challenges during the next 5-6 months, he added.

"When our government was in power earlier, we had given sufficient attention to development in this region. But now the development in the state has slipped to a naught. Our government had provided Rs 40 crore for Maravante harbour, Rs 10 crore for Gangolli port, Rs 30 crore for Koderi and Rs 30 crore to Shiroor port. To tackle sea erosion, it is necessary to build a permanent wall. Apart from providing funds for the construction of permanent sea wall, I will also respond to the problems faced by the fishermen in the coastal region," he assured.

"I will also oppose the Kasturirangan report at the centre and will never let any injustice happen to the people. Our government had sanctioned Rs 30 crore for multi-village drinking water project, out of which Rs 29.5 crore was released, but unfortunately, work on it has not yet begun. I have directed the officials to look into this matter seriously and take steps to immediately start the work," he added.

Yeddyurappa was honoured on the occasion with a silver sword. Former MLA Laxminarayan, former MP B Y Raghavendra, district BJP president Tingale Vikramarjuna Hegde and many others were present.

During his visit, Yeddyurappa visited Maravante, Shiroor, Koderi and areas hit by sea erosion.

Press Meet

B S Yeddyurappa later held a press conference at the residence of BJP leader B M Sukumar Shetty.

He assured that he would press for a permanent solution for the problem of sea erosion that has been troubling the people in the coastal region every year during monsoons. He said that he would be meeting the union ministers and requesting for additional funds for the purpose.

"There is opposition regarding implementation of Kasturirangan report and a meeting was held with union environment minister Javedekar along with MPs of Udupi-Chikmagalur and Dakshina Kannada constituencies to put before the governement the views of the local people. We urged the government to review the report.

"A detailed study will be held regarding CRZ problem followed by discussions with the minister concerned," he added.

"As the minister for railways belongs to our region, he will be sincerely urged for a separate railway zone for Mangalore and to fulfill other demands," he said.

He said that when he was the chief minister he had provided funds for the development of Byndoor constituency and he has inspected the progress of the projects. He said that he would be drawing the attention of the officials concerned to speed up the projects.

Answering a question on the language controversy, he said that there is a general opinion that learning Hindi is beneficial for the citizens as it is a national language, but the local languages will not be disregarded.

"The national highways were repaired after spending several crores but now they are damaged once again and people are finding it difficult to commute on them. A meeting of the department officials concerned will be called in Bangalore and a discussion will be held with the union minister of surface transport," he said.

Former MP B Y Raghevendra, Udupi district BJP president Thingale Vikramarjuna Hegde, Byndoor BJP committee president B M Sukumar Shetty, party leaders Subhaschandra Shetty Bandya, Jayaram Shetty Sabladi, Indira Shetty, Belladi Shankera Shetty, K B Shetty, Sadananda Sherugara, Surendra Kharvi Gangolli, Shamala Kunder, Geethanjali Suvarna and others were present.