Daijiworld Media Network – Bengaluru
Bengaluru, Jun 20: Global Non-Resident Kannadigas have urged the Karnataka government to appoint Legislative Council member Dr Aarthi Krishna as the minister for the proposed separate ministry for Non-Resident Kannadigas, citing her experience as the chairperson of the NRI forum.
Addressing a press conference at a private hotel in Bengaluru on Saturday, office-bearers and leaders of various Kannada organisations from different countries welcomed chief minister D K Shivakumar's approval for a separate ministry for Non-Resident Kannadigas and urged that the ministry be made operational at the earliest. They also appealed for Dr Aarthi Krishna to be entrusted with the portfolio.
Leading the delegation, noted NRI entrepreneur Dr Ronald Colaco said that representatives of 43 Non-Resident Kannada organisations from 30 countries had submitted a memorandum to chief minister D K Shivakumar seeking the appointment of Dr Aarthi Krishna, who is also a member-secretary of the Karnataka government's NRI Forum, as the minister for the proposed ministry.
Dr Colaco said that Dr Aarthi Krishna had served as an Indian Community Development officer at the Indian Consulate in the United States. During the UPA government tenure, she held a key position in the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs and had performed commendably. He said she understands the pulse of NRIs, responds to the difficulties faced by Kannadigas living abroad, and possesses expertise in international law and coordination. Appointing her to the new responsibility would greatly benefit Karnataka and help fulfil the objectives behind establishing the ministry, he added.
He noted that Kannadigas are settled across the world, including in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe, Canada, Africa, Singapore, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia and other Gulf nations. Among them are entrepreneurs, doctors, engineers and other professionals who have achieved distinguished positions, as well as drivers, domestic workers, labourers, nurses and members of various other professions who have built their lives overseas.
Dr Colaco expressed confidence that the new ministry would secure the cooperation of the professional and business community abroad to attract investments from companies and entrepreneurs to Karnataka, encourage industrial growth, support the development of educational institutions, promote agri-business, contribute to the welfare of Kannadigas, and strengthen the state's economic development.
Among those present were NRIs Zakaria Jokatte, Hidayath Addoor, Mohammed Mansoor, Abdullah Monu, Dr Rashmi Nandakishore, Hema Gowda, Ajith Kumar, Raj Kumar, James Mendonsa, Satish Bajal, Bhargav Sharma and others.