From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network

Bengaluru, Jun 28: Chief minister B S Yediyurappa will be writing to his Kerala counterpart Pinarayi Vijayan to desist from changing names of places and villages in Karnataka’s border districts of Kasargod and Manjeshwar in Kerala and retain the existing Kannada names.

"I have already taken note of the media reports regarding Kerala government’s move to change names of places and villages in Kasargod and Manjeshwar and will write to the Kerala chief minister on the matter soon requesting to retain the existing Kannada names,’’ Yediyurappa told the Karnataka Border Development authority chairman, Dr C Somashekar, when the latter took up the matter in Bengaluru on Monday.

The chief minister said that he would request the Kerala chief minister to immediately stop the process of changing the names.

Kannadigas and Malayalis in Kasargod and Manjeshwar are living harmoniously. It is not appropriate to change the Kannada names of villages which have its own cultural and historical values,’’ Yediyurappa said.

Karnataka Border Development Authority chairman brought to the chief minister’s notice that local organizations may have attempted to change names without bringing it to the notice of the Kerala government and the steps must be rectified forthwith.

CSR donations from private companies

Earlier, the top executives of Renew Power Pvt Ltd as well as Flipkart and Walmart handed over medical equipment to chief minister B S Yediyurappa separately as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility funds towards Covid control measures in the state.

Health and family welfare minister Dr K Sudhakar was present.