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Karnataka State Contractors Association (KSCA) President R. Manjunath has written a letter to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, alleging that the state government does not make payments to contractors based on seniority.
In the letter, he mentioned that the interference of middlemen between contractors and government departments has increased significantly. He stated that the government is supposed to release payments based on seniority as per the transparency law, but it is not doing so. "There are a total of 1.5 lakh contractors in the state, out of which 60% are small and medium-level contractors. These contractors are not receiving payments. Only influential contractors are being paid, and Manjunath questions, "How are the rest supposed to survive?," the letter reads. In the letter to CM Siddaramaiah, he also alleges that middlemen are heavily involved in the release of funds in the Public Works Department, the four irrigation corporations, and the minor irrigation department. As a result, funds are not being released based on seniority in these departments. Notably on April 3, Karnataka BJP leaders, including state president BY Vijayendra, former Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa, and senior leader CT Ravi, were detained by police on Thursday during protests against the policies and price hikes introduced by the Congress-led state government in Bengaluru. The demonstrations, targeting the Siddaramaiah administration, led to a swift response from authorities. The leaders were taken into custody as tensions flared in the state capital. The BJP in Karnataka were protesting against the state government over price hikes across multiple sectors. The opposition party leaders in the State staged an overnight protest in Bengaluru's Freedom Park and continued to demonstrate in the morning. Stating that the Congress government has increased the prices of all the essentials, BJP MLC Chalavadi Narayanaswamy said that they want to remain in charge based on the five guarantees offered earlier. The BJP leader took a dig at the ministers in the State government for passing the buck onto the centre for the price hike, saying that only "irresponsible" ministers could make such remarks. (ANI)
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