By Sagay Raj, Apoorva Jayachandran : Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was sworn into office today for his second term at the top post. His deputy, DK Shivakumar, and eight cabinet ministers were also sworn in.
Speaking to the media after the oath ceremony, Siddaramaiah addressed the various guarantees assured by the Congress as part of its poll promise in the state.
Here’s what Siddaramaiah said after first cabinet meeting:
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The state will first implement the Gruha Jyothi scheme, Siddaramaiah said. “The Gruha Jothi scheme, under which 200 units of electricity will be free, will be implemented first. It will cost approximately Rs 1,200 crore. I don’t think it is impossible for our government to raise Rs 50,000 crore in a year,” he said.
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The newly-elected Congress government is still working on the Gruha Lakshmi scheme, the chief minister said. “The Gruha Lakshmi scheme, under which Rs 2,000 will be given to women, will be implemented soon. We are still working out how much we will be spending on it. We will let you know the cost after the next cabinet meeting,” Siddaramaiah said.
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In line with another poll promise, unemployed graduates will be given Rs 3,000 per month for two years, starting this academic year, the chief minister said.
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Bus travel for women will be free, the chief minister said. “We will issue passes for free rides for women. This scheme is only for the Kannadigas and not for outsiders. Irrespective of how much it will burden the exchequer, we will implement it,” Siddaramaiah said.
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Details of most of these schemes and guarantees will be ironed out by the next time the cabinet meets, the chief minister said. “We’ll iron out the details and share them. We will mention all the details, like who are unemployed young people and who will be covered under what scheme, and other such things. We’ll have to look into these finer details before sharing them,” he said, adding that the Assembly session will be held for three days from Monday to Wednesday.
He said that senior most MLA RV Deshpande has been requested to be the Protem Speaker who would administer oaths to MLAs. Speaking to reporters after chairing the first Cabinet meeting today, Siddaramaiah also said a new Assembly Speaker will be elected during the session.
