Article 371(J): legal hurdles delay benefits

Clarity is needed. There is no point if ambiguous rules are made which can be challenged in courts: R.K. Hudagi

The much-touted benefits following the special status accorded to the region under Article 371 (J) still elude the people of Hyderabad-Karnataka (HK) region owing to legal hurdles.

The State government notified the regional reservation facilities for HK residents in education and employment under the Constitutional amendment in November last year.

Though provisions benefited some students to get seats through the Common Entrance Test, some portions of the educational reservation rules were challenged in the High Court of Karnataka, resulting in a stay. On the other hand, rules framed for employment were challenged in the KAT and the government notification was stayed in July. Law Minister T.B. Jayachandra announced in the Assembly that the government would present its case before the courts and get the stays vacated. However, nothing has been done yet.

Activists see this as indifference. “We are forced to think that the development of this backward region is not top priority for the State government,” said B.G. Shetkar, convener, district development association.

Raghavendra Kushtagi, a senior leader of the Hyderabad Karnataka Horata Samiti, said: “There are around 40 elected representatives in HK region. What are they doing,” he asked.

Hanumanth Biradar, KRV leader, said: “Over 25,000 HK residential certificates were issued to youth in Bidar district alone. What is the point if they don’t get jobs or admission in colleges.”

He pointed out the delay had held up appointments of teachers and staff in important institutions such as Bidar Institute of Medical Sciences.

R.K. Hudagi, writer and social activist, says that Article 371(J) needed clarity. “There is no point if ambiguous rules are made which can be challenged in courts,” Professor Hudagi said.

SFI leader Lakshmi Bavuge added that the State government promised HK youth State-wide reservation in education and employment though there was no such provision in the original amendment. Vaijanath Patil, Hyderabad Karnataka Horata Samiti president, said he had requested Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to ensure that the legal hurdles were cleared soon.

“Legal battles take time. Our cases are on track and we hope our notifications will be upheld,” said Mr. Jayachandra.

soucre:http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/article-371j-legal-hurdles-delay-benefits/article6501248.ece

371 (J): Implementation Just a Matter of Time

The countdown has started for implementation of Article 371 (J) in Hyderabad-Karnataka region, said District Minister Umashree after hoisting the flag at Nehru Stadium on the occasion of Republic Day.

“Reservation will be provided to people of the region in both jobs and education. The Constitution’s aim is to provide justice, equality, independence to all and create a feeling of brotherhood and respect towards all religions,” she said. Umashree said the Centre has given approval to the establishment of the National Investment Manufacturing Zone in 12 villages in Bidar and Bhalki taluk. The zone will cover 12,000 acres and will provide jobs directly or indirectly to about 2.5 lakh people, she added.

Bidar district has 693.1 km of state highways and 877 km of district main roads and the government has released `16.06 crore for its maintenance, she added.

source:http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/371-J-Implementation-Just-a-Matter-of-Time/2014/01/27/article2022330.ece

Nod for Development Board for Hyderabad-Karnataka region

President Pranab Mukherjee, late on Wednesday evening, issued an order allowing Karnataka Governor to set up a separate Development Board for Hyderabad-Karnataka region, consisting of six districts, under the recently introduced Article 371J of the Constitution.

The districts to be benefited are: Gulbarga, Bidar, Raichur, Koppal, Yadgir and Bellary.

The Board has come into force with immediate effect. It will ensure equitable allocation of funds to meet the development needs of the region from the State Budget. It will promote employment from the region by providing for local cadres in service; and provide reservation in educational and vocational training institutions to the locals.

The Presidential Order has been issued under the “State of Karnataka (Special Responsibility of Governor for Karnataka-Hyderabad Region) Order, 2013” under Article 371J of the Constitution.

Union Railway Minister and Lok Sabha member from Gulbarga Mallikarjun Kharge told The Hindu that the dream of the people in the six backward districts for the last 12 years had come true now with the establishment of the Board for their development. The districts would get special financial packages from various central ministries meant for development of backward areas and this could not be considered discriminatory.

As there was a constitutional protection – under Article 371J – the decision for providing reservation in jobs or educational institutions or other privileges could not be questioned before the court of law, Mr. Kharge said.

Informed sources said 21 out of 39 taluks in the six districts were “most backward”. The report on the human development index of regions also confirmed the same.

Source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/president-nod-for-development-board-for-hyderabadkarnataka-region/article5268872.ece

Cabinet okays separate development board for Hyderabad-Karnataka region

ew Delhi: A separate development board for the Hyderabad-Karnataka region of Karnataka, which was granted special status recently, was approved on Tuesday by the Union Cabinet, sources said.

Six backward districts of North Karnataka - Gulbarga, Yadgir, Raichur, Bidar, Koppal and Bellary fall in the region.

The Constitution Amendment Bill, passed by Parliament last year provides for establishment of a separate Development Board and equitable allocation of funds for development of the region.

Besides, it provides quota in public employment through constitution of local cadres and reservation in education and vocational training institutions for those who belong to the region by birth or by domicile.

Newly-added Article 371-J of the Constitution grants special status to six backward districts in Hyderabad- Karnataka region, with provision for reservation in education and jobs for locals.

Under the new Article, the President is empowered to entrust the state Governor to establish a separate board to ensure equitable allocation of funds in the state's budget to meet the development needs of the region, the sources said

source:http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/cabinet-okays-separate-development-board-for-hyderabad-karnataka-region_881882.html

Cabinet approves recommendations on Article 371(J)

The State Cabinet, which met on Friday, approved the recommendations presented by the Cabinet sub-committee headed by the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister H.K. Patil on the implementation of Article 371 (J) of the Constitution, which provides special status to the Hyderabad Karnataka region comprising Gulbarga, Raichur, Yadgir, Bidar, Bellary and Koppal.

The recommendations were submitted earlier.

The amendment to the Constitution was envisaged to provide reservation for those from the six districts in the Gulbarga division in educational institutions and government jobs and to provide other special facilities.

source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/cabinet-approves-recommendations-on-article-371j/article4959749.ece?homepage=true

Article 371: panel to submit draft report on July 11

Cabinet subcommittee formed to prepare guidelines for implementation of development works in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region in the wake of special status granted to the region under Article 371 (J) of the Constitution by the Union government will submit its draft report to the State Cabinet on July 11.

Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister H.K. Patil, who is also chairman of the panel, told presspersons Friday that the Union government had asked Karnataka to send a detailed proposal as the President had to issue an Ordinance to this effect.

The Hyderabad-Karnataka region comprising Bidar, Gulbarga, Yadgir, Bellary, Koppal and Raichur districts have been given special status under Article 371(J) of the Constitution.
RULES AND GUIDELINES

Terms and references of the panel include formulation of rules and guidelines for the Hyderabad-Karnataka Development Board and reservation in jobs and quota in admission for technical education.

Once the President gives his assent, the report would come back to Governor, who is head of the State for further course of action.

Before preparing the draft report, Mr. Patil said the panel would meet MPs, MLAs and MLCs in Bangalore on June 27 and 28.

A meeting with activists, heads of trade and commerce bodies and others would be held in Gulbarga and Hospet on July 2 and 3, respectively, he said.

The draft report of the panel would be submitted to the State Cabinet through Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on July 11. “We are optimistic of completing all the work before July-end.”

Recommendations of the D.M. Nanjundappa Committee on regional imbalances would be the basis for the Cabinet subcommittee in preparing the draft proposal, Mr. Patil said.

Replying to a question on whether the Hyderabad Karnataka region would get special grants from the Centre, Mr. Patil said it would be made known after many more exercises.

“All our efforts are in the direction of seeking more funds from the Centre to eliminate regional inequality,” he said.


source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/article-371-panel-to-submit-draft-report-on-july-11/article4841444.ece

Article 371 (J): officials told to prepare draft rules

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday said he had directed officials to prepare draft rules within three days for implementing Article 371 (J) of the Constitution, which provides special status to the Hyderabad Karnataka region comprising Gulbarga, Raichur, Yadgir, Bidar, Bellary and Koppal.

Speaking to press persons after a preliminary meeting attended by Ministers from the region and officials here, the Chief Minister said one more meeting would be held to consider the draft. It would take a month to complete the entire process of formulating the draft and finalizing it. He said the government would have to study the financial assistance from the Center and the State government’s share for the welfare measures.

Mr. Siddaramaiah said he would soon meet Union Ministers and officials in New Delhi and seek Central assistance for development activities in the six districts.

On the impact of gutka ban on arecanut growers, he said other States had also taken the step following a direction by the Supreme Court.

On the fall in prices of arecanut by Rs. 2,000 a quintal after the ban was announced, Mr. Siddaramaiah said the government would protect the interests of areca growers.


source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/article-371-j-officials-told-to-prepare-draft-rules/article4771706.ece

‘This region has had a raw deal’

"The Union government’s decision to amend the Constitution to provide a comprehensive solution to the backward Hyderabad Karnataka region is historic. However, the backwardness of the region is historic too,” said historian and academic B.R. Konda.

“Places like Bidar and Gulbarga were among the most important cities in medieval India. But they got a raw deal in modern times. This region that has been far behind old Mysore or coastal Karnataka on various human development indicators never received the attention it deserved. It was discriminated against in every sector and failed to get its share of resources too,” said Prof. Konda. He points out that when Mysore University was established in 1916, the whole of Hyderabad Karnataka had just one high school. Students of my generation had to go to private teachers in madrassas, maths or temples to learn the alphabet and arithmetic. The first government schools in Bidar were started in 1954,” he said. English education did not arrive in the district till the late 80s, he added. He explained that there were historical reasons behind this. The Nizams were not focused on education, healthcare, employment generation or industrialisation till very late in their regime. Administration reforms and welfare measures started only after 1900. “But we can only say they had little time to implement their plans,” he said. The type of government and the objectives of politics in Hyderabad were very different from British India or progressive States like Mysore or Travancore. Neither was the administration benevolent, nor was the political awareness among our people high as the anti-British movement did not spread to this region. The only thing we can blame is our destiny,” he said.

On linguistic basis

“To start with, the State reorganisation committee, led by Justice Fazal Ali, had recommended that the Hyderabad Karnataka region should be made into a separate state, with Hyderabad as the capital, and not be merged with the Mysore state saying “development should be the criterion for unification and not emotional issues like language”. However, the Union government decided on linguistic division of states after the fast unto death of Telugu leader Potti Sriramulu. Secondly, we were never welcome in the Mysore state. A committee, headed by the then Diwan Sheshadri Iyer, said that joining Hyderabad Karnataka would be a burden on the state. Even the Union government’s decision to merge HK region with Mysore was met with resistance. Members of the Mysore Assembly debated for three days before passing a resolution of conditional approval,” he said.

“Thirdly, when the Union government introduced amendments to the Constitution to grant special status to Telangana and Marathwada in 1956, the HK region was left out. The argument that these backward regions needed special treatment, would naturally apply to HK region. These three regions were earlier part of the Nizam state and suffered the same fate. It is easy to see that when the Hyderabad Nizam state was broken up into three parts, each part had to be dealt with in the same manner, in equal measure. All the benefits and facilities available to the people of Telangana and Marathwada should have been made available to the residents of Hyderabad Karnataka. But neither did the government extend the same benefits to this region, nor did any of our legislators or leaders demand it. The level of political awareness found in Telangana was not found in HK. Thus we lost the first opportunity for special status,” he said.

He said the idea of a development board for Hyderabad Karnataka was mooted by a committee for development of backward areas, headed by N. Dharam Singh in 1982. But the Hyderabad Karnataka Development Board was not formed till 1992. “The demand for a special region was officially made only in 1996, when the former Minister Vaijnath Patil raised the issue in the form a private member Bill in the Assembly in 1996. Similar efforts were made by K.B. Shanappa in the Rajya Sabha in 2009. The Hyderabad Karnataka Horata Samiti, led by Vaijnath Patil, carried out a sustained campaign for special status and now the movement seems to have come to its logical end,” Prof. Konda said.

Hyderabad-Karnataka region gets spl status

The Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved the proposal of granting special status to Hyderabad-Karnataka region.

The bill regarding the amendment of the Constitution is likely to be tabled in Parliament in a day or two.

Earlier, the proposal was cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs headed by Prime Mister Manmohan Singh.

Six backward districts in North Karnataka — Gulbarga, Yadgir, Raichur, Bidar, Koppal and Bellary — will benefit from the special status.

These districts will get special priority in allotting funds from the state government in development, education and employment sectors. Apart from this, people of this region will get reservation in recruitment in government jobs and admission in educational institutions.

The amendment to the Constitution, as part of the special status to the region, will enable establishment of a regional council or board which will have its own elected members and budget. Each year the budget allocated and expenditure incurred has to be passed by the Assembly.

Union Labour Minister Mallikarjuna Kharge told reporters that the proposal of according special status is an improvement over the special status given to the Telangana region in Andhra Pradesh and Vidarbha in Maharashtra.

Bidar bandh peaceful

The ‘Bidar bandh’ called by various organisations on Friday to protest against the delay in starting the Bidar-Secunderabad intercity express train and changing the timings of the Nanded-Bangalore express train was peaceful and almost total . Most shops remained closed and North East Karnataka Road Transport Corporation buses did not operate its services till afternoon. Government offices and schools remained open, while some private schools had declared a holiday.

In the morning, youth took out a motorcycle rally in the city and urged shopkeepers to down shutters.

Later, they gathered at Ambedkar Circle and raised slogans against the Union government. They also raised slogans against N. Dharam Singh, MP, and other local leaders for not lobbying hard enough with Railway Minister Mukul Roy for fulfilling the long pending demands of the district. Bidar Chamber of Commerce and Industry president B.G. Shetkar said that the Centre had failed to realise that changing the timings of Nanded express train, to make it an overnight train from Bidar to Bangalore, would improve governance in the district and boost trade and tourism. Mr. Shetkar said the Union government and Railway Board were “insensitive” to the demands of the district. Ramesh Pande, former MLA, said that the board was unnecessarily delaying running the Bidar-Secunderabad intercity express train that was announced in this year’s Railway Budget. Later, they marched to the Railway station and blocked the Nanded-Bangalore express train and the Hyderabad-Purna passenger train. Some protesters climbed on top of the train engines and raised slogans against the Centre. The BCCI and several other organisations had called for the bandh.

• The cold response to the demand for changing timings of Nanded-Bangalore train draws flak
• Centre, Railway Board accused of being ‘insensitive’ to the demands of Bidar district

source; http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/article3819311.ece

Krishna hails move to grant spl status to Hyderabad-K’taka

External Affairs Minister SM Krishna on Friday hailed the Centre's move to accord special status to backward Hyderabad-Karnataka region, saying it would meet the long-pending demands of the people of north-Karnakata.

It was a historic decision taken by the UPA Government to meet the long-pending demands of the people of North Karnataka, he said in a statement here.

The Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA) today decided to amend Article 371 of the Constitution by moving a Bill in the monsoon session of Parliament to bring the Hyderabad-Karnataka region under special status to help faster development. 

People of six North Karnataka districts-Gulbarga, Yadgir, Raichur, Bidar, Koppal and Bellary had welcomed the Centre's decision by bursting crackers.

"Political questions", meant to be out-of-the-bounds for the courts, have often been thrown into the laps of judges. Instead of throwing them back, the courts have, with great enthusiasm, forayed into adjudication of such questions, often with unsatisfactory results, Justice Srikrishna said.

'The Ayodhya Reference case', where President requested Supreme Court to answer politically sensitive questions such as whether a temple existed before the construction of Babri mosque, and the Ram Sethu dispute (as to Sethu's historical authenticity) fall in the category where the matter cannot be resolved by reference to "judicially manageable standards", he said.


"It would have in fact required the judges to opine on a point of archaeology, rather than law, and thereby step on to a political minefield," Srikrishna said.

The Supreme Court was perfectly right in refusing to answer the Ayodhya Reference. Such questions have arisen merely on account of failure of the executive or the legislature to resolve their own political problems and are attempts to pass the buck to the judiciary, Srikrishna opined.

The apex Court should stoutly resist the temptation to crown itself with political thorns. The decision of the Supreme Court in the 2G spectrum case mandating public auction as the only mode of disposal of all natural resources is a very recent example, he said, adding that he would not comment further as the matter was subjudice.

Source: http://zeenews.india.com/news/karnataka/krishna-hails-move-to-grant-spl-status-to-hyderaba_791595.html

Industries, HDI to be the focus under Article 371 for Hyderabad-Karnataka region

The special status for six backward districts of Hyderabad-Karnatak region by the Centre under Article 371(J) will focus on industries and human development index besides education and employment.

The regional tag coming to the six districts Gulbarga, Yadgir, Bidar, Bijapur, Koppal and Bellary after a long wait of 40 years is expected to incorporate the Telangana, Maratwada, Saurashtra and Vidarbha models who are already under Article 371, Union Labour minister Mallikarjun M Kharge, hailing from Gulbarga told Stoi on Saturday.

Yadgir is being marketed by the state government for setting up industries. In the Global Investors' Meet held in June this year, the government had come up with several concessions for those wanting to set up industries in Yadgir, which incidentally is the youngest district in Karnataka carved out in 2009.

The pathetic state of these districts was mentioned in the D M Nanjundappa committee which went into the regional imbalances in north Karnataka region a decade ago. In his report , Nanjundappa had suggested removal of discriminations and amendment to the Article 371. The report, was prepared after an exhaustive and scientific study over a two-year period and submitted to chief minister S M Krishna.

The report had identified 114 taluks and classified them as most backward, more backward, and backward for determining the priorities. Of them, 59 taluks were in north and 55 in south Karnataka.

In the Human Development Index report released in 2008 for Bijapur and Gulbarga, the highlight was all taluks of Bijapur were backward in terms of income and human development. Regarding Gulbarga it was at the bottom of the human development index ranking 26 thamong the then 29 districts.

There was celebration in the six districts on Saturday. Former CM N Dharam Singh's son Ajay Singh, who has been running an NGO for the uplift of the people in Gulbarga said: When AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi visited Gulbarga during the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, he had promised the people and it has been done now.''

source:  http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Industries-HDI-to-be-the-focus-under-Article-371-for-Hyderabad-Karnataka-region/articleshow/15354847.cms

Centre considers quota for Hyderabad-K’taka region

The Centre, which is working on granting special status to the Hyderabad-Karnataka region, is learnt to have favoured to amend the Article 371 of the Constitution to provide reservation in employment and education sector for the candidates of the backward region.

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs, which has prepared a draft Cabinet note, also emphasised on providing special financial grant to certain developmental projects in the region. 

Besides, a separate council will be set up comprising local elected representatives and nominated members to monitor the developments schemes to ensure its speedy execution.

Though the Centre had earlier promised to provide some financial grant to take up developmental works instead of providing reservation in job and education, the home ministry has now agreed to accord special status considering astonishingly low human development index in the region, sources in the government told Deccan Herald.

As the process of granting special status involves massive task, including amendment to the Constitution, definite time frame cannot be fixed for the final decision, sources said adding it may materialise before the next Assembly elections in the state which is in due early next year.

At present the Centre has accorded special status to several backward regions of the country, including Telangana in Andhra Pradesh. As Telangana’s special status is complicated to implement, leaders from Karnataka sought little flexible method in providing job and employment reservation which was agreed by the Centre, sources added.

Reservations

After the amendment to the Constitution by the Centre, the Karnataka government can also frame some rules to provide job reservations in recruitment of group A and B posts by making separate quota for the residents of six districts backward districts of North Karnataka region including Gulbarga, Yadgir, Raichur, Bidar, Koppal and Bellary.

Home Minister P Chidambaram on Saturday admitted that the Centre is working on the proposal submitted by the Karnataka government and the Union Cabinet would take a final call.

Speaking to Deccan Herald, Union Labour and Employment Minister Mallikarjuna Kharge said to match the Central grant, the state government should also sanction financial grants for the development of the region.

He said the state government’s proactive steps should be needed for getting special status at the earliest.

Centre declines deadline for special status to H-K ..

Despite continual pressure from the State government on the Centre to grant special status to the Hyderabad-Karnataka region, it has declined to set a deadline to fulfill the State’s long-standing demand.

Though the State has made several representations to the Union Home Ministry demanding special status to the backward districts of north Karnataka including Gulbarga, Yadgir, Raichur, Bidar, Koppal and Bellary by amending Article 371, the Centre still seems to be studying the representation.

However, it is learnt that Union Home Minister P Chidambaram has agreed to extend a few benefits to the backward regions of the State. Although, the Union government is against granting special status, it is keen on extending a special package, sources in the Ministry said. However, no deadline has been set.

source: Deccanherald

Url:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/237104/centre-declines-deadline-special-status.html