Karnataka will have people-centric economy in five years, says governor

The new Congress government will promulgate schemes on the lines of Universal Basic Income, giving people a share of the wealth they have helped create, Karnataka governor ThaawarChand Gehlot said in his address to the joint session of the legislature on Monday.

The governor placed an emphasis on building a people-centric economy in the next five years.

Reiterating the five Congress guarantees, he referred to the Anna Bhagya scheme, saying the arrangement to provide money instead of 5 kg of rice would continue till the quantum of rice required for poor households can be procured. The state government is prepared to make any sacrifice necessary in order to implement the scheme, he said.


"The new Karnataka governance will be a model to the country with a balance of economy and welfare," said Gehlot.

Karnataka, which once stood tall and contributed immensely to the country, has now fallen in a state of distress, said the governor. Corruption has become so entrenched in our systems that it has almost become institutionalised, he said.

"Bringing the state out of this distress would be the government's priority," he said.

The new government will treat agriculture, industry and the service sector on an equal footing, said Gehlot. "In the next five years, we plan to take all the unfinished irrigation projects to completion," he said.

Karnataka is the second-most arid state after Rajasthan.

The government will also make amendments to the Prohibition of Transfer of Certain Lands Act, 1978, to better protect the lands of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities, the governor said.

Developing the tourism sector will also be a priority for the government, said Gehlot. "In the next five years, we will create five lakh new jobs in this sector," he said.

Bengaluru's infamous traffic got a mention in the governor's address as well. It is the second slowest city in the world after London, according to Dutch navigation and digital mapping company TomTom's Traffic Index. Gehlot said the government will make Bengaluru a healthy, sustainable city by reducing the traffic congestion as much as possible.

Praising the Congress' victory in the assembly polls in May, when the party won 135 out of 224 seats, the governor said such a majority was not seen in 34 years. "People expect an administration that reflects the change they sought and one that mirrors their aspirations," he said.