New Delhi: The government on Friday rejected a
plea for constitutional amendment which amounts to creation of
separate region comprising some districts of Karnataka saying
a "sub-state cannot be carved out to address the problem of
backwardness".
Responding to a private member`s bill, Home Minister P
Chidambaram said in the Rajya Sabha that the backwardness of
Hyderabad-Karnataka region can be tackled by proper
utilisation of funds, implementation of schemes and improving
quality of administration.
The bill was moved by K B Shanappa (BJP) who wanted a
constitutional amendment to provide for special provisions
with regard to Hyderabad- Karnataka region consisting of
Gulbarga, Bidar, Raichur, Koppal and Bellary.
"I don`t think anywhere in India, sub-states are carved
out to address backwardness. In my view, the constitutional
amendment is not an answer to the problem," Chidambaram said.
Noting that an amendment to the Constitution should be
done sparingly, Chidambaram said other institutional
arrangements need to be recognised to deal with backwardness.
The Home Minister also observed that some parts of the
states remain backward and that is universal truth. But "there
must be a political will to address backwardness," he said.
E M Sudarshan Natchiappan (Cong), through another private
member`s bill, said some districts like Raichur and Gulgarga
in Karnataka are left behind despite panchayati raj system
working very well in the state.
He said the state should allocate funds for development of
these districts and find ways to enhance job opportunities.
Speaking on another private member`s bill, Shantaram
Laxman Naik (Cong) said the government should see whether it
was required to bring an amendment to the Constitution to
address the issue of backwardness.
He sought certain amendments to stop aggressive land
buying in Goa and put in place a transparent recruitment
system.
PTI
