Yediyurappa offers bagina to Cauvery, Kapila rivers

Mysuru / Mandya: Days after the major dams in the Cauvery basin reached their maximum capacity, chief minister B S Yediyurappa on Friday offered puja and bagina to Cauvery and Kapila rivers at KRS and Kabini dams respectively.
The CM thanked gods for the bounty, which he said will help the farming community. This is the fifth time Yediyurappa has offered bagina to the rivers.
He said the government is committed to implement the Mekedatu dam project while he announced Rs 8.48 crore funds to replace the16 crest gates of KRS dam. “Our government is focusing on irrigation projects across the state and have spent Rs 74,000 crore on 28 irrigation projects,” he said.
The CM said the government was planning to increase cultivable area in irrigated areas coming under major reservoirs across the state. Mandya district minister K C Narayanagowda, Mysuru district minister ST Somashekar, Mandya MP Sumalatha, Mysuru MP Pratap Simha, MLAs Ravindra Srikantaiah, Annadani and M Srinivas were present.
After visiting KRS dam, the CM offered pooja to Kapila river near HD Kote. He also launched Rs 50 crore worth projects including a bridge across the river just downstream of the Kabini dam and development of road from HD Kote handpost.
Meanwhile, Hassan district minister K Gopalaiah and law minister JC Madhuswamy offered bagina to Hemavathi river at Gorur in Hassan district. The dam has reached its full capacity for the third consecutive year. JD(S) MLAs HK Kumaraswamy, CN Balakrishna and AT Ramaswamy accompanied them.
Won’t scrap this year’s Dasara fete: CM
Mysuru will host its annual Dasara festival this season amidst the Covid crisis. Chief minister Yediyurappa on Friday cleared the air saying the government is not looking to scrap this year’s Dasara festival.
However, he indicated that the celebrations will be scaled down and it could be a simple Dasara given the constraints owing to the pandemic. He told reporters at HD Kote that Dasara high power committee headed by him will meet and chalk out the details.
With this, the confusion over the celebrations scheduled in the second week of October has been cleared paving the way for Mysuru authorities to plan for the Naada Habba. Foresters, who put the plan to bring Dasara elephants to Mysuru on Hold, can now resume their annual Dasara-related activities.
Water resources minister Ramesh L Jharkhiholi on Friday said exchanging information between officials of Maharashtra and Karnataka before releasing water from their dams to downstream areas of Krishna and Bhima rivers helped both states to prevent loss of life, property during this year floods in North Karnataka districts.
He was speaking after releasing a yearbook called “Jalayagna”, an annual calendar of achievements brought out by his department during the bagina offering ceremony held at KRS in Mandya district here.
Protesting farmers held
Mysuru and Mandya police on Friday arrested scores of farmers who tried to barge into KRS and Kabini dams accusing the BJP government of adopting anti-farmer policies.
Farmers who tried to enter KRS dam were stopped by police at Katteri and Belagola. The farmers had planned to hold a black flag demonstration. The farmers accused the government of failure to contain illegal mining at Baby Betta reserved forest which is posing a threat to the safety of the reservoir as explosives are used by miners.
Farmers also protested at Shiramalli junction near Kabini dam in HD Kote. State Sugarcane Growers Association president Kurbur Shantakumar said the farmers’ right to protest has been curtailed by the government. Members of Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha held a demonstration at HD Kote junction.
Meanwhile, Mandya MP Sumalatha Amabreesh sought the CM’s intervention to curb illegal mining in the vicinity of KRS dam.