I welcome Sankeshwara joining Congress, says Rayareddy

"If the industrialist Vijay Sankeshwara joins Congress, I will welcome it. But allowing him into the party, or no; is left to the party," said Higher Education Minister Basavaraj Rayareddy, in Kalaburagi on Tuesday.

He spoke to reporters after taking over as Chairman of the Hyderabad Karnataka Development Board.

"Sankeshwara is a multi-faceted and well-respected entrepreneur. These days BJP has become very business-like. BJP's candidate for the Rajya Sabha elections MP Rajeev Chandrashekar had earlier made a poll pact with the JD(S). Now he has made a pact with the BJP," Rayareddy remarked.

Centre's funds for H-K region

"The Central government must sanction funds for Hyderabad-Karnataka (H-K) development also. We will ask for it. Because this is a backward region, the Constitution has been amended to provide for a 50% grant. It is the Centre's responsibility to provide development funds," Rayareddy stressed.

Comprehensive development plan

"We have been demanding resources from the beginning. But the Centre has not responded," said the H-K Development Board's former Chairman and Medical Education Minister Dr Sharanaprakash Patil.

The minister continued by pointing out that under Article 371(J) of the Constitution, only Davanagere's Harappanahalli taluk has been included and the cabinet of ministers has denied the special status to Rona taluk's five villages.

A comprehensive plan for the development of all taluks in the region for the next 10 years would be compiled and presented. Priorities like education, healthcare, human resource development will be included, and the cost estimated, the minister added.