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Chief Minister Siddaramaiah recalled watching Dasara procession as a child sitting on his father’s shoulders decades ago.
Speaking at a function organised atop Chamundi Hills to inaugurate the Mysuru Dasara festival on Sunday, Mr. Siddaramaiah said his father had brought him to Mysuru to watch the Dasara procession when he was around five to six years old.
“I watched the Dasara procession sitting on my father’s shoulders,” Mr. Siddaramaiah said recalling that his father had even asked him to fold his hands when the Maharaja seated in the golden howdah atop a caparisoned elephant would pass.
Even though he could not make out if the Maharaja was passing or not, Mr. Siddaramaiah said he would simply fold his hands as directed by his father.
Later, when he shifted to Mysuru for his studies, Mr. Siddaramaiah said he would watch the Dasara procession every year. He also recalled visiting the Dasara exhibition almost every day. “Those days, the Dasara exhibition would be held in the Mysuru Medical College premises. Now, ofcourse, it has been shifted to the Doddakere Maidan,” he said.
He pointed out that the Dasara festival helps the State to not only project its culture and traditions but also to exhibit its progress through the Dasara procession and Dasara exhibition. Along with culture and tradition, Dasara should be used to project the state’s achievements, he said.
Drought
Referring to the prevailing drought in the State, the Chief Minister said, the State government decided to celebrate Dasara in a traditional manner but without affecting the importance of the festival.
So, the festivities had been planned in such a manner that the importance of Dasara does not come down at any cost, he said.
Due to the failure of monsoon, the Chief Minister said crops on 42 lakh hectares of land in the State had been lost and the farmers had suffered losses to the tune of ₹30,000 crore.
However, he said the State government had sought Central aid of ₹4,860 crore as per the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) norms. The Central team had visited the State to assess the loss suffered by the farmers and would submit a report to the Centre.
A total of 216 taluks of the 236 taluks in the State had been declared drought-hit and the State was hoping to receive ₹4,860 crore aid from the Centre to tackle the situation.
Pointing out that Central aid was not enough to provide compensation to the farmers suffering crop loss, Mr. Siddaramaiah said the State government will have to spend on providing drinking water, employment to people, fodder for the cattle etc.
The Chief Minister also pointed out to the phenomenon of “green drought” in the State, where the crops will not give any yield.
Guarantee schemes
Mr. Siddaramaiah said the State government had also announced five guarantees to ensure universal basic income to the people.
While the State government had already started implementing four guarantees, the fifth one – Yuva Nidhi, which seeks to provide monthly allowance to educated youth till they secure a job – will be implemented from January next year, he said.
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