BENGALURU: The ensuing cabinet meeting on October 18 will decide on the implementation of socio-economic survey report, stated Chief Minister Siddaramaiah after a meeting of a delegation of MLAs/Ministers belonging to Backward Classes.
Siddaramaiah said, such an exercise to conduct socio-economic survey including educational status of the residents was initiated during my term as Chief Minister (2013-18) and Karnataka was the first State in the country to embark on such an exercise.
Now, the report has been accepted by the incumbent Congress government in Karnataka, the Chief Minister said he is under pressure from various quarters to approve the socio-economic report and also its implementation. However, he said he has not read the report so far but said the report is of 7 crore Kannadigas.
Explaining the socio-economic survey report, Siddaramaiah said the then Chairman of Permanent Backward Classes Kantharaju conducted an extensive door-to-door survey to gather details from the residents and was ready for its submission. But, then Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy (as CM in 2018-19) refused to accept the report and asked then Minister of Backward Classes Puttaranga Shetty not to accept it.
“Though an appointment was fixed with the then Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy for submission of the socio-economic survey report but it could not happen,” said the Chief Minister adding the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in power from 2019-2023 also did not evince interest in accepting the socio-economic report.
Meanwhile, the term of Kantharaju ended and he was succeeded by former Lok Sabha member Jayaprakash Hegde and he submitted the report to the State Government in 2023. The Chief Minister said he assured the Backward Classes MLAs/Ministers to place the report before the cabinet and to abide by the decision of the cabinet on the implementation of socio-economic survey report implementation.
Meanwhile, Union Minister of Heavy Industries and Steel H.D. Kumaraswamy took a dig at the ruling Congress government over delay in implementation of socio-economic survey report. He pointed out the report was submitted to the State Government before Lok Sabha elections and questioned “Why there has been no discussion on the report implementation till now?”
He observed “These dramas have started to divert people’s attention since no development works have been taken-up in the State.”
