‘Tourism and wellness will drive Mysuru’s growth’

MYSURU: Ahead of the International Day of Yoga, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday stressed the need to sync Mysuru’s growth with tourism and wellness.
Listing some projects the Centre has initiated for Mysuru’s development, he said yoga will create a brand for Mysuru globally. At a public meeting after launching a slew of development projects, he said he’ll continue to focus on Mysuru’s development. He said that it’s in Karnataka that we see both spirituality and financial development.
“Mysuru is the confluence of history, heritage and modernity. To connect the world with a healthy lifestyle, we selected Mysuru for Yoga Day celebrations. Tomorrow, crores of people will join Mysuru in celebrating Yoga Day,” he said. He said once the new railway works are completed, Mysuru’s connectivity will be boosted. Before 2014, Karnataka’s share in the railway budget was Rs 800 crore but this year, it’s Rs. 7,000 crore. The electrification of railway lines have also been taken up.
“Between 2004 and 2014, just 60-km railway lines were electrified and we achieved 1,600kms of electrification in eight years,” he added. He recalled the contributions of Mysuru maharaja Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyary, dewan Sir M Visvesvaraya and poet laureate Kuvempu for the state’s welfare.
Chamundeshwari MLA GT Devegowda (JDS) and Mandya MP Sumalatha Ambareesh (independent) were at the event. Devegowda welcomed him at the helipad. Meanwhile, police detained some farmers’ leaders who wanted to attend the programme with their green shawls. Since they insisted on entering the ground with the shawls, police took them away. Bokkahalli Nanjundaswamy, one of the leaders, said: “We didn’t come to hold a protest but police didn’t allow us to enter the venue. ”