Title - Qamar-ul: beginning of a new era of development

Municipal Administration and Wakf Minister Qamar-ul Islam said that the 67th Independence Day celebrations signalled the beginning of a new era of development for Hyderabad Karnataka.Two long-pending demands of the region are becoming a reality: establishment of a permanent bench of the Karnataka High Court, and implementation of Article 371(J).Speaking after inspecting the guard of honour and unfurling the national flag during the Independence Day celebrations on the Police Parade Ground here on Thursday, Mr. Islam said that the permanent bench of the Karnataka High Court here would cover Gulbarga, Yadgir, Bijapur and Raichur.It would be inaugurated on August 31. Chief Justice of India P. Sathasivam has been invited to participate in the inaugural function.Mr. Islam said that the State has already decided to extend the benefits of Article 371(J) to the people of Hyderabad Karnataka. The framing of rules and fixing of reservation has been finalised.Once the notification empowering the Governor to frame the rules for implementing Article 371(J) gets Presidential assent, special status would become a reality, he said.

It is heartening to note that the Centre and State have joined hands to develop the region’s road and rail network, the Minister said. He lauded Railway Minister M. Mallikarjun Kharge for his contributions to the region’s development: getting the ESIC super-speciality hospital for Gulbarga, upgradation of the railway station, expediting the construction of the Gulbarga-Bidar rail line, and the electrification of the Wadi-Gulbarga rail line.

The Minister reiterated the government’s commitment to protect wakf properties. Survey and listing of wakf properties was nearing completion, and this would put an end to the encroachment of wakf properties and enable the government to take back those properties. The government also proposes to construct a Haj Bhavan here, along the lines of the one in Bangalore, he added.