Udupi, 18 November 2010: In a huge function that was organized jointly by Udupi District administration, Zilla Panchayat Health and Family Welfare Department and Women and Children Development Department in the Mahatma Gandhi Ground at Ajjarakadu, Udupi on Wednesday, 17th November 2010 at 2 pm, B.S. Yeddyurappa, the Chief Minister of Karnataka distributed ‘Bhagya lakshmi’ bonds and saris to the mothers of those girls covered under the Bhagya Laksmi Scheme.
The function of distributing benefits to the target group was presided over by K. Raghupati Bhat, MLA of Udupi. Mrs. Glady Rebello, President of the Udupi Zilla Panchayat and Mrs. Shamala Sudhakar, President of Udupi Taluk Panchayat jointly lighted the lamp inaugurating the programme. C.C. Patil, Minister in charge of Women and Children Development delivered the introductory address, Dr. V.S. Acharya, Minister in charge of Higher Education and the Minister in charge of the Udupi District distributed the ‘Bhagya Lakshmi’ bonds to the beneficiaries. B.S. Yeddyurappa released the handbook comprising of the Report of the Progress of the District.
Other guests of honour at the function included: A.B. Kodgi- Third Financial Commission chairman, MLCs-Ganesh Karnik and Kota Srinivasa Poojary, B. Nagaraja Shetty- former state minister, D.V. Sadananda Gowda-MP, Kiran Kumar- President of Udupi Town Council, Sudhakar Shetty- Udupi Development Authority chairman, MLAs-Lalaji R. Mendon and Lakshmi Narayana.
According to a report around 13,000 girls from poorer families in the Udupi District will be covered under the ‘Bhagya Lakshmi’ scheme that will help them in availing the facilities of education. Yeddyurappa said that around eleven and a half lakhs of girls from poor families all over the Karnataka state would be brought under this scheme. In his Speech, B.S. Yeddyurappa said that if this scheme was introduced 25 to 30 years earlier, most of the girls from the poorer families would have got education and good health.
At this function, speaking about other developmental schemes for the district of Udupi, B.S. Yeddyurappa said that in order to upgrade the Mahatma Gandhi Ground at Ajjarakadu as the District level sports ground, he will release within a week around Rs. 4 lakhs for its development. He also promised other developmental schemes for the district such as small bridges, laying new roads and repairing the old ones. He also assured solar electricity to remote areas and villages where there is no provision for access to electricity. Finally he said that he would see to it that both Dakshina Kannada and Udupi Districts will become model districts in the whole of Karnataka.