Siddaramaiah pitching for a Lingayat to head state unit of Congress

Bengaluru, Apr 18: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is said to be pushing for a change in the state Congress presidentship, as part of the measures to galvanise the party to face the Assembly elections next year.

Sources in the party said the chief minister has explained in detail to the party high command the need for replacing incumbent G Parameshwara, who has been doubling up as the party chief and the home minister. Siddaramaiah has recommended that a Lingayat leader be made the next president to steer the party in the next elections, the sources added.

Parameshwara, who is a Dalit leader, has been the state unit president for nearly six-and-a-half years. The chief minister and the KPCC president had been at loggerheads on many issues in the past. Differences between the two have again cropped up on who should claim credit for the party’s victory in the Nanjangud and Gundlupet byelections. Siddaramaiah has consolidated his position in the party after the byelection victories.

The sources said Siddaramaiah informed the high command that the byelections have shown that the party can penetrate the Lingayat strongholds. The byelections have also disproved a belief in political circles that Lingayats are strongly behind B S Yeddyurappa. Hence, a prominent community leader from North Karnataka should be made the KPCC president to woo the community, he suggested.

Names of former minister S R Patil and Water Resources Minister M B Patil are making the rounds for the post. Both are Lingayats. Siddaramaiah has not favoured a Vokkaliga leader for the KPCC post. Energy Minister D K Shivakumar, who is trying to project himself as the Vokkaliga face of the Congress after S M Krishna quit the party, is one of the aspirants for the post. But Shivakumar is not ready to give up his post as minister, the sources said.

The possibility of making a Dalit leader the state party chief was also discussed during the meeting. The chief minister has recommended PWD Minister H C Mahadevappa’s name as one of the key leaders of the community. Mahadevappa is a close associate of Siddaramaiah. He was the party in-charge of the byelection to the Nanjangud Assembly constituency. Mahadevappa has emerged as a prominent Dalit leader in the Old Mysuru region after the exit of V Srinivas Prasad. Former Union minister K H Muniyappa is also in the race for the post.

Sources said Parameshwara has been trying to continue as both the party president and minister. He is projecting himself as a successful pradesh Congress president and that he alone can take everybody along during elections.

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Mangaluru’s ₹1,200 crore fix: Massive sewage overhaul to end city’s drainage woes

News Network

December 19,2025

Mangaluru: In a decisive move to tackle the city’s deteriorating sanitation infrastructure, the Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) has announced a massive ₹1,200 crore action plan to overhaul its underground drainage (UGD) network.

The initiative, spearheaded by Deputy Commissioner and MCC Administrator Darshan HV, aims to bridge "missing links" in the current system that have left residents grappling with overflowing sewage and environmental hazards.

The Breaking Point

The announcement follows a high-intensity phone-in session on Thursday, where the DC was flooded with grievances from frustrated citizens. Residents, including Savithri from Yekkur, described a harrowing reality: raw sewage from apartments leaking into stormwater drains, creating a "permanent stink" and turning residential zones into mosquito breeding grounds.

"We are facing immense difficulties due to the stench and the health risks. Local officials have remained silent until now," one resident reported during the session.

The Strategy: A Six-Year Vision

DC Darshan HV confirmed that the proposed plan is not a temporary patch but a comprehensive six-year roadmap designed to accommodate Mangaluru’s projected population growth. Key highlights of the plan include:

• Infrastructure Expansion: Laying additional pipelines to connect older neighborhoods to the main grid.

• STP Crackdown: Stricter enforcement of Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) regulations. While new apartments are required to have functional STPs, many older buildings lack them entirely, and several newer units are reportedly non-functional.

• Budgetary Push: The plan has already been discussed with the district in-charge minister and the Secretary of the Urban Development Department. It is slated for formal presentation in the upcoming state budget.

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