Maharashtra plans office near Belagavi border to extend health scheme to Marathi speakers in Karnataka

Maharashtra Minister for Excise and Border in-charge Shamburaj Desai chaired a meeting with Belagavi’s Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti on Wednesday, 21 February. (Facebook)

In the meeting, Maharashtra discussed expediting its efforts to pursue the dispute case pending before the Supreme Court, implementation of health schemes in four districts of Karnataka, and appealing against the Kannada Language Comprehensive Development (Amendment) Bill, 2024, MES sources said.

Pro-Kannada organisations alleged that while Maharashtra has been holding several meetings on the border dispute, the Siddaramaiah-led Karnataka government had not convened even a single meeting after assuming power in May last.

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs had on 14 December 2023 issued a notice to the Karnataka government for not setting up a high-level committee comprising three Cabinet ministers.

Karnataka’s Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs HK Patil said he was unaware of the notice.

Meanwhile, several pro-Kannada organisations criticised the Congress government for not taking bold measures to counter Maharashtra’s strategies. They also slammed Maharashtra for rolling out its health schemes on linguistic lines.

Maharashtra has been demanding the merger of Belagavi and certain other border areas with that state.

Related: What the Karnataka-Maharashtra border dispute is all about

Maharashtra to extend health scheme

Maharashtra’s move to set up the administrative office at Shinoli might further deteriorate its relationship with Karnataka.

The border dispute between Karnataka and Maharashtra has been simmering for the past more than five decades. (File pic)

“The Maharashtra government is likely to begin an office related to the border issue at Shinoli village in a couple of months. It has already begun the preparations for establishing the office,” Belagavi District Kannada Organisations Action Committee President Ashok Chandaragi said.

“Maharashtra is opening this office to implement one of its health schemes exclusively for the Marathi-speaking people living in Karnataka. It is planning to implement its health scheme not only in Belagavi but also in three other districts,” he claimed.

Chandaragi said Maharashtra was setting up the office to make its case stronger before the Supreme Court.

He further said that the neighbouring state had decided to depute a gazetted-ranked officer and some employees to the proposed office at Shinoli.

Earlier, pro-Kannada organisations had opposed the establishment of Maharashtra’s four official centres, forcing that state to drop the plan.

Also Read: BJP elects Marathi-speaking corporators as mayor, deputy mayor of Belagavi City Corporation

Mumbai meeting discusses 3 main issues

The MES source privy to the Desai-chaired meeting in Mumbai said three main points were discussed.

“Three issues were discussed in the meeting. The first one is about seriously following the border dispute case with the Supreme Court. A high-level committee comprising three ministers will hold talks with Maharashtra’s legal team in Delhi,” he said.

“The second is the implementation of the Mahatma Jyotirao Phule Jan Arogya Scheme in 865 villages in four Karnataka districts (Karwar, Belagavi, Bidar and Kalaburagi). The final one is about appealing against the Kannada Language Comprehensive Development (Amendment) Bill, 2024,” he explained.

“Final decisions were made only on the first two issues. The meeting would go on appeal against the Kannada Bill once it is fully implemented across Karnataka,” he added.

Related: Pro-Maharashtra outfit defies Section 144, observes ‘black day’ in Belagavi

Pro-Kannada activists miffed 

Meanwhile, pro-Kannada organisations criticised Karnataka’s soporific attitude towards the issue.

Pro-Kannada activist and political commentator Ashok Chandaragi. (South First)

Even after frequent violations of a pact signed earlier by the neighbouring state, the Karnataka government has not chaired a single meeting to assess the ongoing interstate border dispute with Maharashtra.

Despite slapping notice on Karnataka by the Union Home Ministry, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had not constituted the high-level committee, they claimed.

“We strongly oppose the implementation of Maharashtra’s health scheme based on linguistic lines in Karnataka. This is not only against the federal system but also the Constitution as well,” Chandaragi said.

“In January, Maharashtra was gearing up to open four centres in Belagavi. To avail the benefits of its health schemes, it made it mandatory for the Marathi-speaking people to submit an affidavit, attesting that they speak Marathi and are residents of Karnataka.”

“We opposed it and ensured that all the centres were shut with the help of the district administration. Now, Maharashtra violated the terms and conditions chalked out in a meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah and attended by the chief ministers of Karnataka and Maharashtra in Delhi on 14 December 2022,” he alleged.

Criticising the state government, Chandaragi said Maharashtra had also identified and shortlisted 140 hospitals in Karnataka to implement its health scheme. “What is the Karnataka government doing to counter Maharashtra,” he asked.

“Looking at the attitude of the state government, it is clear that the chief minister and his Cabinet are in deep slumber. It is shameful that even after a year of assuming power, the government is yet to convene a meeting on the interstate border dispute,” Chandaragi said.

“Even the chairman posts of border-related boards and corporations are yet to be filled,” he further said.

“Importantly, the Karnataka Border and Water Protection Commission Shivaraj Patil has also become mum instead of utilising his office to the fullest. It clearly shows that the government neither has the spirit nor the political will to counter the neighbouring state,” Chandaragi alleged.