Nearly a week after the BJP government came under intense criticism from the Opposition over district in-charge Ministers not doing enough in their districts, it seems to have been a mixed effort from the Ministers, who have been present, physically or virtually, to monitor the situation.
Following the criticism from the Opposition at the all-party meeting convened by Governor Vajubhai R. Vala, the Ministers were nudged to be more proactive in their districts by Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa. The surge in COVID-19 cases outside Bengaluru has become a cause for concern since several districts are reporting a higher Case Fatality Rate and higher cases in proportion to their population.
However, it has now emerged that most of the Ministers monitoring their own home districts in their capacity as district in-charge are working from the ground, while the others remain mostly physically absent and are monitoring remotely.
No one in charge
Belagavi and Chikkamagaluru districts have no district in-charge Ministers following the resignation of Ramesh Jarkiholi and C.T. Ravi. Belagavi is being monitored informally by Food and Civil Supplies Minister Umesh Katti, while officials are managing the Chikkamagaluru situation. Incidentally, four Cabinet Ministers, including Mr. Katti, are from Belagavi.
Deputy Chief Ministers Govind Karjol and Laxman Savadi, who are the in-charge Ministers of Kalaburagi and Raichur, respectively, have not been seen in the districts in the recent past. Mr. Karjol, who is in charge of his native district Bagalkot as well, had opted for virtual monitoring during floods. He has chosen the same mode this time too.
After visiting Raichur along with Mr. Yediyurappa last month for attending the BJP’s election campaign for Maski, Mr. Savadi has not returned to the district. He, however, held a meeting online on Friday. Koppal in-charge and Agriculture Minister B.C. Patil, who is from Hirekerur in Haveri district, held a meeting of senior officers and legislators on April 19. After that, he neither visited the district nor held any virtual meetings, sources said.
In the coastal district of Udupi, Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai has only been able to participate in a videoconference meeting with the district administration once, on April 22.
Kodagu in-charge and Housing Minister V. Somanna visited Madikeri last Friday and promised to hold videoconference meetings thrice a week. Minister for Cooperation S.T. Somashekar, who is in charge of Mysuru district, had accompanied Health Minister K. Sudhakar during a visit on Thursday. Minister for Primary and Secondary Education S. Suresh Kumar, who is in charge of Chamarajanagar, met officials on Friday. Minister for Excise K. Gopalaiah, the Hassan in-charge, visited the district on Friday. The Ministers are “in touch on phone” with officials, these district administrations claim.
On home turf
Meanwhile, Ministers holding charge in their home districts — such as Backward Classes and Muzrai Minister Kota Srinivas Poojary in Dakshina Kannada, Minister for RDPR K.S. Eshwarappa in Shivamogga, Prabhu Chauhan in Bidar, and Anand Singh in Ballari — have been seen spending more time being physically present there.
(Compiled by Sharath S. Srivatsa with inputs from R. Krishna Kumar, Laiqh A. Khan, Kumar Buradikatti, Rishikesh Bahadur Desai, Ravi Prasad Kamila, and G.T. Satish)
