Karnataka to adopt Centre's Lokpal Act

Bangalore, Jan 22 (PTI): Declaring its commitment to provide a "clean, efficient and transparent" administration, the Congress government in Karnataka today said it was taking action to "adopt" the Centre's Lokpal Act that provides for formation of an anti-graft ombudsman.

"My government welcomes the Lokpal bill of the government of India and action is being taken to adopt it in our state," Governor H R Bhardwaj told the joint session of state legislature in his customary address outlining priorities and initiatives of the eight-month-old Siddaramaiah government.

Last December, Parliament had passed the Lokpal and Lokayukta Act that seeks to establish a Lokpal at the central level and asks states to set up Lokayuktas within a year's time from the date of notification of the law, leaving the format to be decided by the state assemblies.

He said the government had also constituted a committee for strengthening, tracking and simplifying governance under the chairmanship of the Law Minister to make administration transparent, accountable and corruption-free.

Bhardwaj also told the members that the government had decided to provide laptops and electronic notepads to pre-university students, free of cost to enable them to get access to knowledge through the Internet.

In another initiative, Karnataka government has targeted creation of 10 lakh direct jobs in the next five years by upgrading the manufacturing sector under a new industrial policy to be unveiled in April, he said.

Bhardwaj said the new industrial policy to be formulated and implemented from April 1 would ensure balanced and integrated industrialisation of the state.