Rs 1 crore sanctioned for new girls' hostel in DK'

July 19, 2011

Mangalore, July 19: A newly built girls' hostel for Karnataka Polytechnic was inaugurated on Tuesday at Kadri here by the District-in-charge Minister Krishna J Palemar.

The two story-building with 14 rooms was built with the cost of Rs 60 lakh, said Mr Palemar.

He said a sum of Rs 2.90 crore would be spent to construct Industrial Training Institutes in the district.

Mr palemar said government has sanctioned Rs 1 crore each to construct girls' hostel as well as for the Department of Social Welfare to open Backward Classes and Minorities' (BCM) hostels in the district at rented buildings.

Admitting that the schools and colleges face shortage of 40 to 50 per cent of teaching staff, the minister said within five years government would take measures to run institutions systematically.

He said the furniture for the girls' hostel will be provided within a couple of months.

Mahabala Suvarna, Class I Contractor who built the girls' hostel was felicitated on the occasion.

Mangalore MP Nalin Kumar Kateel, Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly N Yogish Bhat, MLA UT Khader President of Mangalore Urban Development Authority Dr B Madhava Bhandary and others were present.

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Campus politics: DKS pushes to restore student elections in Karnataka banned since 1989

News Network

November 26,2025

Bengaluru, Nov 26: Karnataka is taking its first concrete steps towards lifting a three-decade-old ban on student elections in colleges and universities. Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar announced Wednesday that the state government will form a small committee to study the reintroduction of campus polls, a practice halted in 1989 following incidents of violence.

Speaking at a 'Constitution Day' event organised by the Karnataka Congress, Mr. Shivakumar underscored the move's aim: nurturing new political leadership from the grassroots.

"Recently, (Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha) Rahul Gandhi wrote a letter to me and Chief Minister (Siddaramaiah) asking us to think about restarting student elections," Shivakumar stated. "I'm announcing today that we'll form a small committee and seek a report on this."

Student elections were banned in Karnataka in 1989, largely due to concerns over violence and the infiltration of political party affiliates into campus life. The ban effectively extinguished vibrant student bodies and the pipeline of young leaders they often produced.

Mr. Shivakumar, who also serves as the Karnataka Congress president, said that former student leaders will be consulted to "study the pros and cons" of the re-introduction.

Acknowledging the history of the ban, he added, "There were many criminal activities taking place back then. We’ll see how we can conduct (student) elections by regulating such criminal activities."

The Deputy CM reminisced about his own journey, which began on campus. He recalled his political activism at Sri Jagadguru Renukacharya College leading to his first Assembly ticket in 1985 at the age of 23. "That's how student leadership was at the time. Such leadership has gone today. College elections have stopped," he lamented, adding that for many, college elections were "like a big movement" where leaders were forged.

The move, driven by the Congress high command's push to cultivate young talent, will face scrutiny from academics and university authorities who have, in the past, expressed concern that the return of polls could disrupt the peaceful academic environment and turn campuses into political battlegrounds.

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