Govt. will decide on division of Belagavi district, says Bommai

Belagavi

There is a renewed demand for the division of Belagavi district, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said in Belagavi on Thursday.

“This is an old demand. It was raised several decades ago. However, when the J.H. Patel Government announced the bifurcation of the district, Kannada organisations protested against it, saying it could be bad for the interest of the State. The demand has been renewed recently and we are looking at it. We will take a decision that is in the best interests of the State and the district,” he said.

The State Cabinet will be expanded after the party High Command gave the go ahead, the CM said. “Till now, there has been no discussion with senior leaders of the party about the Cabinet expansion. I am going to New Delhi tomorrow for a judicial conference. I will return soon. Whenever the High Command approves of the reshuffle, we will go ahead with it,” he said.

“Belagavi is a big district. It needs large representation. All such factors will be considered during the next expansion,” he said in reply to a query.

“There is some stretch of revenue land in Belagavi in the possession of the Army. The State Government has written to the Union Government seeking it back. Rajnath Singh, Defence Minister, has sought a report in this regard,” he said.

About the delay in the execution of some irrigation projects in Belagavi district, the CM said Govind Karjol, Irrigation Minister who was in charge of Belagavi, would take a decision.