KOPPAL
Koppal MLA K. Raghavendra Hitnal described former Chief Minister D. Devaraja Urs as a powerful leader who laid a strong foundation for the empowerment of backward, poor and exploited communities.
He was speaking at the 111th birth anniversary programme held at Sahitya Bhavan in Koppal on Thursday.
Hitnal said Urs introduced historic reforms that expanded educational, economic and political opportunities for disadvantaged communities. He highlighted the “tiller is the owner” land reforms, which gave land rights to lakhs of agricultural workers, and the establishment of hostels that helped backward-class students pursue education. He said Urs also encouraged several young leaders to enter public life.
Additional District Magistrate Sidrameshwar urged hostel students to use the facilities provided by the Backward Classes Welfare Department responsibly and achieve good academic results. He said students should repay the support given to them by their families and the department through hard work and success. He also encouraged young people to join the state government’s Bharat Jodo Yuvak Sangh programme.
Assistant Professor Shankrayya Abbigeri Math recalled Urs’s major social reforms, including land reforms, abolition of bonded labour, measures against manual scavenging, debt relief and welfare schemes for poor families. He said Urs also supported reservation in education and employment following the L.G. Havanur Commission recommendations and renamed Mysore State as Karnataka.
District Backward Classes Welfare Officer Nagamani Hosamani said the department now runs 99 hostels and residential institutions in Koppal district, benefiting 10,779 students. Awards were presented to high-performing students, hostel staff and winners of essay and speech competitions. Speakers urged students to carry Urs’s ideals forward through education, hard work and social responsibility.