Three days after taking oath, portfolios allotted; Kota gets Muzarai, Ports and Inland Water Transport

[email protected] (CD Network, Photos by Suresh Vamanjoor)

July 15, 2012

Bangalore, July 15: Karnataka Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar Sunday allotted portfolios to his ministers, three days after forming the cabinet, but the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party faced fresh trouble from those denied ministerial berths.

Shettar and BJP leaders have played safe by allotting the same portfolios to 21 ministers who held them in the D.V. Sadananda Gowda government which fell last Wednesday due to dissidence. The portfolio distribution was delayed because of hectic lobbying by the ministers, backed by the factions they belong to, for plum departments.

The issue was finally resolved late Saturday after Shettar met BJP chief Nitin Gadkari and party senior leaders L.K. Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley in New Delhi. However, there seemed to be no respite for either Shettar or BJP from the dissidence rocking the party since it came to power for the first time in the state in May 2008.

A group of around 20 party legislators, upset over denial of ministries, Saturday demanded that Shettar drop from the cabinet "tainted ministers" and also members of the legislative council.

"There are several ministers against whom cases have been registered. Why keep them in the cabinet when our leaders asked B.S. Yeddyurappa to quit when a case was filed against him," Belur Gopalakrishna, legislator from Shimoga, about 250km north of Bangalore, told reporters here.

The ministers fighting cases of corruption and illegal land deals include V. Somanna (housing), Murugesh Nirani (industries), C. P. Yogeshwar (forests) and C. T. Ravi (education). Somanna, Nirani and Yogeshwar were ministers in the Gowda cabinet also while Ravi has become the minister for the first time.

Two days back Governor H.R. Bhardwaj told reporters that BJP leaders had ignored his advice to keep out of the ministry legislators facing cases. Yeddyurappa, BJP's first chief minister in the state, was forced to quit last July following mining bribery charges. Gowda took over last August but bowed out last Wednesday following a campaign orchestrated by Yedyurappa.

Gopalakrishna and other upset legislators have been meeting under the leadership of former minister G. Karunakara Reddy in Bangalore for the last three days to decide on a strategy to pressure the BJP leadership to accept their demands.

Karunakara, brother of former minister and jailed mining baron G. Janardhana Reddy, told reporters that "all 21 of us will decide what we should do. We are still discussing. We will announce the decision July 18 or 19". The assembly session to pass the state budget for 2012-13 is to begin July 19, the day when the voting in the presidential polls will also take place.

There is speculation that these legislators could create problem for the Shettar government if the party does not placate them. The budget has to be passed by July 30. State BJP chief and one of the two new deputy chief ministers K. S. Eshwarappa said efforts were on to win over these legislators.

He indicated to reporters in Bellary, about 300 kms north of Bangalore, that these legislators will be offered chairmanship of government run corporations and boards. Shettar, like most of the chief ministers of Karnataka, retained finance and intelligence wing. He will also look after, among several other departments, minority welfare and information technology and biotechnology.

Eshwarappa will hold the revenue department, rural development and panchayat raj, which Shettar looked after in the Gowda ministry. Another deputy minister R. Ashoka will continue to preside over home and transport departments, the two portfolios he had in the Gowda cabinet. A Raj Bhavan communique said the governor had allotted the portfolios on the recommendation of the chief minister.

Following are the portfolios of Karnataka ministers

Jagadish Shettar, Chief Minister- Department of Cabinet Affairs, Department of Personnel andAdministrative Reforms.Department of Finance including Institutional Finance andexcluding Excise, Small Saving & Lotteries. Intelligence Wing from Home Department;All subjects pertaining to Bangalore City from Urban Development Department-excluding BWSSB. Information from Kannada and Culture, Information & Tourism Department. Mines and Geology from Commerce & Industries Department. Minority Welfare from Social Welfare Department.IT-BT from IT, BT and Science & Technology Department. Any otherDepartment not specifically allocated.

K.S.Eshwarappa, Deputy Chief Minister: Revenue Department Excluding Haj & Wakfs and Muzarai; Rural Development and Panchayat Raj including Rural Development Engineering Department and Rural Water Supply & Sanitaion.

R Ashoka, Deputy Chief Minister: Transport Department. Home Department excluding Intelligence Wing and Prisons.

Govind M. Karjol: Minor Irrigation from Water Resources Department. Kannada and Culture from Kannada and Culture,Information & Tourism Department.

R. Suresh Kumar: Law, Justice and Human Rights; Parliamentary Affairs; Legislature. Urban Development Department-7 City Corporations outside Bangalore; KUWS&DB, KUIDFC, Directorate of Town Planning; Directorate of Land Transport,Urban Development Authorities excluding subjects pertaining to Bangalore City but including BWSSB and excluding CMCs, TMCs, TPs and Local Bodies.

C.M.Udasi: Public Works Department excluding ports and Inland Water Transport Department.

Visweswara Hegde Kageri: Primary and Secondary Education from Education Department excluding Mass Education and Public Libraries.

Umesh Vishwanath Katti: Agriculture Department. Basavaraj Bommai- Major and medium irrigation from Water Respurces Department. Murugesh Nirani- Large and Medium- scale industries from Commerce and Industries Department.

V.Somanna- Housing Department

Shobha Karandlaje- Energy Department

B.N.Bachhegowda- Labour Department; Sericulture from Horticulture Department

M.P.Renukacharaya- Excise from Finance Department

C.P. Yogishwar- Forest from Forest, Ecology & Environment Department.

S.A. Ravindranath: Sugar from Commerce & Industries Department; Horiculture Department.

R.N. Belamagi- Mass Education and Public Libraries from Education Department; Small Savings and Lotteries from Finance Department.Animal Husbandry from Animal Husbandry & Fisheries Department

Balachandra Jarkiholi-Municipalities and Local Bodies (CMCs, TMCs and TPs) from Urban Development Department, Department of Public Enterprises

S.A.Ramdas- Medical Education from Heath & Family Welfare Department

Asnotikar Anand Vasant- Fisheries from Animal Husbandry and Fisheries Department, Science and Technology from IT,BT S&T Department.

A.Narayanaswamy- Social Welfare Department excluding Minorities Welfare, Prisons from Home Department

R.Varthur Prakash- Textiles from Commerce & Industries Department

Sogudu Shivanna- Ecology and Environment Department, Planning Department, Statistics Department

C.T.Ravi- Higher Education from Education Department

D.N.Jeevaraj- Food and Civil Supplies Department

S.K.Bellubbi- Haj & Wakfs from revenue Department. Agriculture Marketing from co-operation Department. Aravind Limbavali- Health and Family Welfare Department excluding Medical Education

B.J.Puttaswamy- Co-operation Department excluding Agriculture Marketing

Anand Singh- Tourism From Kannada and Culture, Information and Tourism Department.

Kalakappa Gurushanthappa Bandi- Women and Child Development Department

Kota Srinivasa Poojary-Muzarai from Revenue Department. Ports and Inland Water Transport from Public Works

Appachu Ranjan- Youth Services and Sports Department

Sunil Vallyapure- Infrastructure Development Department

Comments

Add new comment

Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.

Mangaluru Tees Off Big: Golf Excellence Academy to Open at Pilikula

News Network

February 1,2026

The coastal city of Mangaluru is gearing up for a major sporting milestone with the launch of a Golf Excellence Academy at the Pilikula Golf Club (PGC), scheduled to open on May 31. The initiative aims to position Mangaluru firmly on India’s national golfing map.

Speaking to reporters on Saturday during PGC’s first-ever floodlit Pro-Am tournament, club captain Manoj Kumar Shetty said the project is being funded by UAE-based philanthropist Michael D’Souza and is currently in the design phase. Experts from leading golf academies across the country are expected to visit Mangaluru to help shape the training programme and infrastructure.

The academy will train 20 young golfers at a time, with a long-term vision of producing national-level players from the region. Until now, PGC relied on an in-house coach, but the recent renovation of the course and the introduction of floodlights have opened new possibilities for expanding the sport.

Shetty said discussions are underway with two reputed coaching academies, whose heads are expected to visit PGC shortly. “A dormitory for trainers is already under construction. We are inviting academies to assess the facilities and suggest changes so we can build a truly world-class Golf Excellence Academy,” he said.

Professional golfer Aryan Roopa Anand noted that the floodlit course would be a game-changer for young players. “Students can now practise after school hours, even up to 8 or 9 pm, without compromising on academics,” he said.

Comments

Add new comment

Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.

Mangaluru–Kasaragod bus fare rolled back after Kerala protests force NHAI to shut Arikkady toll plaza

coastaldigest.com news network

February 5,2026

Mangaluru: The KSRTC Mangaluru division has rolled back the fare hike on buses operating on the Mangaluru–Kasaragod route following the suspension of toll collection at the Arikkady toll plaza near Kumbala in Kasaragod district.

The fare revision had been implemented after the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) began toll collection at the Arikkady plaza on NH-66. As a result, fares for ordinary and Rajahamsa services were increased by ₹7 and ₹10, respectively, raising the bus fare from Mangaluru to Kasaragod from ₹81 to ₹88.

Senior Divisional Controller of KSRTC’s Mangaluru division, Rajesh Shetty, said the fares were reduced after toll collection at the Arikkady plaza was stopped. “The tollgate began operations on January 13, and the toll amount was deducted from the FASTag accounts of KSRTC buses operating on the route. Following an order from the central government to suspend toll collection, KSRTC has also withdrawn the additional fare with immediate effect,” he said.

At present, vehicles travelling on the Mangaluru–Kasaragod route pay toll only at the Talapady toll plaza. The toll for light motor vehicles (LMVs) at Talapady is ₹80 for a same-day return, while heavy vehicles, including buses, are charged ₹250. At Arikkady, the toll rates were ₹130 for LMVs (same-day return) and ₹450 for buses.

Protests against Arikkady toll plaza

The Arikkady toll plaza witnessed widespread protests from January 12, the day toll collection commenced. On the second day, an action committee led by Manjeshwar MLA A K M Ashraf launched an indefinite protest at the site. Except for the BJP, leaders and workers of most major political parties participated in the agitation.

On the night of January 14, a large number of protesters gathered at the plaza and vandalised property, following which authorities temporarily suspended toll operations. The BJP later also expressed opposition to the toll plaza and criticised NHAI’s decision.

Comments

Add new comment

Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.

Why Mangaluru Could Become India’s Next Offshore Wind Energy Hub

News Network

February 3,2026

Dakshina Kannada MP Capt Brijesh Chowta has urged the Centre to give high priority to offshore wind energy generation along the Mangaluru coast, citing its strategic importance to India’s green energy and port-led development goals.

Raising the issue in the Lok Sabha under Rule 377, Chowta said studies by the National Institute of Oceanography have identified the Mangaluru coastline as part of India’s promising offshore wind ‘Zone-2’, covering nearly 6,490 sq km. He noted that the region’s relatively low exposure to cyclones and earthquakes makes it suitable for long-term offshore wind projects and called for its development as a dedicated offshore wind energy zone.

Highlighting the role of New Mangalore Port, Chowta said its modern infrastructure, multiple berths and heavy cargo-handling capacity position it well as a logistics hub for transporting and assembling large wind energy equipment.

He also pointed to the presence of major industrial units such as MRPL, OMPL, UPCL and the Mangaluru SEZ, which could serve as direct buyers of green power through power purchase agreements, improving project viability and speeding up execution.

With Karnataka’s peak power demand crossing 18,000 MW in early 2025, Chowta stressed the need to diversify renewable energy sources. He added that offshore wind projects in the Arabian Sea are strategically safer compared to the cyclone-prone Bay of Bengal.

Calling the project vital to India’s target of 500 GW of renewable energy by 2030, Chowta urged the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy to initiate resource assessments, pilot projects and stakeholder consultations at the earliest.

Comments