Karnataka govt to bear treatment cost of Padma Shri awardee

MANGALURU: Social welfare and backward classes welfare minister and Uttara Kannada district minister Kota Shrinivas Poojari said that the state government will bear the treatment cost Padma Shri awardee and Halakki tribal folk artiste Sukri Bommagowda.
Poojari told reporters after visiting the Padma Shri awardee at the KMC hospital on Tuesday evening that chief minister Basavaraj Bommai had called him in the morning and said that her entire hospital expense will be borne by the State government.
The CM also directed the deputy commissioner to pay special attention to Sukri’s health. “We fondly call her Sukri Ajji. She is recovering well because of the timely treatment provided by the hospital. She greeted us with a smile and said that she would be home soon. We also told her about the government’s decision and prayed for her speedy recovery," he said.
Sukri was admitted to the hospital on Saturday after she reportedly complained of breathing difficulties. She is considered the living encyclopaedia of the Halakki Vokkaliga tribe to which she belongs.