CM Shivakumar to hold separate meetings with sugar mill owners and cane growers in Belagavi

Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar will visit Belagavi district on October 25 and 26 to participate in the Kittur Utsav and hold separate meetings with sugar mill owners and sugarcane growers to discuss their demands.

Mr. Shivakumar will arrive at the Sambra airport on October 25 at 4.40 p.m. on a special flight from Mysuru. He will travel by road to Kittur and participate in the Kittur Utsav programme at 5.20 p.m. He will stay in Belagavi overnight.

On October 26, the Chief Minister will inaugurate the Maharshi Valmiki Jayanti celebrations and procession in Belagavi at 10 a.m. He will then meet sugar mill owners at the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha at 11 a.m.

At 1.30 p.m., he will visit Yellammana Gudda to lay the foundation stones for various development works. He will return to the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha at 3.30 p.m. to meet sugarcane growers.

The meetings assume significance as the Chief Minister himself met the protesting farmers at Kittur during their ‘Hubballi Chalo’ agitation last week and told them that he would convene a meeting of farmers shortly on the issue.

In spite of his request to withdraw the agitation, the protesting farmers had continued the agitation only to temporarily suspend it a day before the Dasara festival after another late night meeting with Union Minister Pralhad Joshi and subsequent discussions with other farmers’ leaders.

The Chief Minister’s discussions are expected to focus on the demands of farmers and the concerns of sugar mill owners.

Mr. Shivakumar is scheduled to leave for Bengaluru by special flight on October 26 at 6.30 p.m.

‘Will call for bandh’

Meanwhile, State president of the Karnataka Rajya Raita Sangha and Hasiru Sene Chunappa Pujeri has said that if their demands were not met during the meeting with the Chief Minister on October 26, they would call for ‘Karnataka Bandh’ on October 27.

Speaking to press persons here on Saturday, he said that they were hopeful that the government would fulfil their demands.