Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Sum of Rs. 12,000-cr. set aside for development of education sector

• Chief Minister inaugurates new buildings at Sahyadri College
• Government support to improve infrastructure promised

Shimoga: Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa said here on Sunday that the Government had set aside Rs. 12,000 crore in the State Budget towards the development of the education sector. Priority would be given to improving the quality of higher education and providing students with modern facilities to prepare them to face challenges of a globalised world, he said.

He was speaking after inaugurating the new building of Sahyadri Arts College, Postgraduate Department of Tourism Management and students' utility complex in the Sahyadri College campus. Mr. Yeddyurappa said there was a need to tap into the unique talents of students and give them opportunities to excel with their skills so that they could bring laurels to the country as well as the institutions where they studied.
The Chief Minister recalled that Sahyadri College was started as an intermediate college in 1940 by the then Maharaja of Mysore Chamarajendra Wadiyar, before being renamed by the poet laureate Kuvempu.

The college had produced eminent personalities such as P. Lankesh, Purnachandra Tejaswi, U.R. Ananthamurthy and singer B.K. Sumitra, he noted.

He assured the college authorities of the Government's support in improving the infrastructure of the college.

Earlier, principal of Sahyadri Science College B.R. Siddaramappa appealed to Mr. Yeddyurappa to release sufficient funds for the completion of an international-level stadium and the construction of another boys' hostel.

He also urged the Government to support the construction of separate buildings for the postgraduate departments housed in the college.

Vice-Chancellor of Kuvempu University B.S. Sherigara presided over the function.

State BJP president K.S. Eshwarappa, Deputy Chairman of State Planning Board D.H. Shankaramurthy, Shimoga MP B.Y. Raghavendra, Shimoga Rural MLA K.G. Kumaraswamy, Bhadravati MLA B.K. Sangameshwar, Sagar MLA Belur Gopalakrishna, Deputy Commissioner Pankaj Kumar Pandey, zilla panchayat Chief Executive Officer A.B. Hemachandra, MLC P.V. Krishna Bhat, MLC R.K. Siddaramanna and others were present.