Pics: Spoorthi Ullal

Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (ANK)

Mangaluru Feb 17: Veera Rani Abakka Utsava committee urged the district administration to include committee's name in the invitation of upcoming Veera Rani Abakka Utsava, or else committee will separately conduct Abbakka Utsava on April 18 and 19.

Addressing media here on Monday, February 17, committee president K Jayarama Shetty said, "From the year 2008 to 2017, Veera Rani Abakka Utsava committee was initiating the Utsava with the help of government funds and has since then successfully organised the event for 10 years, but the last two years it was organised under district administration which did not receive rave reviews from the public."

District administration has decided to conduct Abbakka Utsav for the year 2019-2020. The deputy commissioner has written a letter to the government regarding the upcoming Abbakka Utsav conducted under district administration. However, the district committee consisting of 120 members has been formed without any criteria, claimed Jayarama Shetty.

"Eight years ago, a committee was formed with an effort to construct the Abbakka Bhavan near Thokkottu bus stand which has now been stalled, despite several notices submitted to the concerned ministers and MLA's there has been no progress in the construction of the Abbakka Bhavan," he added.

Due to the demand made by the 2015 committee, a proposal for the Abbakka research study chair at Mangalore University was sanctioned. But, the lack of funds put a halt at the research study chair. Recently we demanded higher education minister and district in-charge minister to allot Rs 2 crore in the budget for the same. We had also demanded to see central government, state government and district administration to rename Mangaluru International Airport to Rani Abbakka International Airport but it is of no use," he maintained.

Veera Rani Abakka Utsava committee's Hyder Parthipaady, Dinaker Ullal, Dhanalaxmi Gatty, D N Raghava and others were present.