Late Puneeth Rajkumar bestowed with Karnataka Ratna award on Rajyotsava day

Bommai — along with actors Rajanikanth and Telugu superstar Junior NTR, who were chief guests on the occasion — handed over the award to the late actor’s wife Ashwini Puneeth Rajkumar.

Commencing the programme around 4.30 pm in front of the Vidhana Soudha, singer Vijay Prakash and his team began with Kannada Vachanas, and followed them with a few of Puneeth’s and his father’s hit songs.

In attendance were not only Rajnikanth Junior NTR but also Infosys Foundation Chairperson Sudha Murthy and the Rajkumar family members, among other distinguished guests.

However, the Karnataka Rajyotsava’s invitation card did not mention the governor or any of the Opposition leaders.

On the occasion of the Rajyotsava, Bommai also announced a bill that would be introduced in the joint session of the state legislature in December to use Kannada in all walks of life.

“A law will be enacted in the state by getting the bill passed to ensure the use of Kannada in all fields. Once this is done, the BJP government will be the first to give legal protection for the Kannada language,” the chief minister said.

The awardees

This time, the Karnataka Sanskruthi Ilaake (Karnataka Cultural Department) formed an expert committee for identifying achievers from various fields, like literature, sports, folk arts, and social work. It chose 67 awardees for the Karnataka Rajyotsava awards.

Kannada Development Authority Chairperson TS Nagabharana said: “Since it is the 67th Karnataka Rajyotsava, 67 awardees have been selected. But this time, they have chosen the awardees both from the list of applicants they received as well as those who did not apply.”

The awardees included former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairperson K Sivan, who headed the organisation from January 2018 to January 2022. The country had launched Chandrayaan-2 during his tenure.

Another awardee was Madan Gopal, the retired IAS officer who was the chairman of the National Education Policy (NEP) in Karnataka. He set up a committee for the textbook curriculum, but also jumped the gun stating the Pythagoras theorem and Newton’s gravitational laws had their origins in ancient Indian Vedic knowledge.

When there was a huge uproar on social media, he asserted that the committee, which had decades of experience on the subjects, knew more about the Indian origin of knowledge.

Madan Gopal landed in another controversy after he stated that the topic of Hindu genocide should be included in the curriculum.

Another awardee was Gudda Panara, a Daiva Nartaka (dancer for the gods) over the past 38 years in coastal Karnataka who has been into Daivaradhane (Adoration of God). The Kannada blockbuster movie Kantara focused on one such coastal dance form.

Among the awards conferred to 67 achievers this year was pourakarmika Mallamma Hoovinahadagali from the Vijayanagar district.

The awardees received a cash prize of ₹1 lakh along with a 25-gm gold coin and a citation.

Reactions galore

Writer and activist Lalitha Naik told the South First: “This time, I have not seen many popular names. If it is an ele mareya kai (a seed hidden behind a leaf), it’s a welcoming thing, as there would be plenty of people who are service-oriented and would not get enough recognition or publicity for an award like this, as the government cannot focus on everybody to see what they are doing.

She added: “However, if it’s the other way around, if a person is conferred with an award just because he or she is related to an MLA or was chosen by recommendations, then it would be an insult to the Rajyotsava.”

Noted author KS Bhagwan told South First: “The government this time carefully handpicked achievers working and serving in various fields in the state. I am happy that such an endeavour was made by the government, as not all people know about everyone working in all the fields.”

He added: “And I am happy that this state honour is extended to the Rajkumar family.”