Karnataka: Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, dedicated the HAL Helicopter Factory to the nation in Tumakuru today. He also laid the foundation stone of the Tumakuru Industrial Township and two Jal Jeevan Mission projects at Tiptur and Chikkanayakanahalli in Tumakuru. The Prime Minister took a walkthrough of the Helicopter Facility and Structure Hangar and unveiled the Light Utility Helicopter

Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister said that Karnataka is a land of saints and sages that have always strengthened the Indian traditions of spirituality, knowledge and scientific values. He also highlighted the special significance of Tumkuru and the contributions of Siddaganga Mutt. He informed that the heritage of Anna, Akshara and Ashray left behind by Pujya Shivkumar Swamy is being carried forward by Shri Siddalinga Swamy today.

The Prime Minister said that today many projects worth hundreds of crores, related to employment opportunities for the youth, ease of life of the rural community and women, strengthening of the armed forces and the concept of Made in India are being dedicated or foundation stones are being laid.

The Prime Minister lauded the talent and innovation of Karnataka youth and said the manufacturing sector’s strength is manifested in products from drones to Tejas fighter planes. “Double-engine government has made Karnataka the first choice of investors” the Prime Minister asserted and illustrated the point by the HAL project dedicated today for which the Prime Minister laid the foundation stone in 2016 with a pledge for reducing the foreign dependence for defence needs.

The Prime Minister expressed delight that hundreds of arms and defence equipment are being manufactured in India which are being used by the armed forces today. “From advanced assault rifles to tanks, aircraft carriers, helicopters, fighter jets, transport aircraft, India is manufacturing it all”, the Prime Minister remarked. Throwing light on the aerospace sector, the Prime Minister pointed out that the investment made in this sector in the last 8-9 years is five times the investment made before 2014 plus 15 years prior. The Prime Minister underlined that Made in India arms are not just supplied to our armed forces but the defence exports have also grown manifold when compared to the years before 2014. He emphasized that hundreds of helicopters are going to be manufactured in this facility itself in the near future which will give rise to businesses worth 4 lakh crore. “When such manufacturing units are set up, it does not just strengthen the armed forces but also creates employment and self-employment opportunities”, Shri Modi remarked as he underlined that small businesses near the helicopter manufacturing facility in Tumkuru will get empowered.

The Prime Minister emphasized that With the spirit of ‘Nation First’ success is assured. He talked about revamping and reforms in the working of the public sector enterprises as well as opening up opportunities for the private sector.

The Prime Minister referred to the recent propaganda to target the government in the name of HAL and said that falsehood, no matter how big, frequent or high, is always defeated in the face of truth. “This factory and the rising strength of HAL has exposed the purveyors of falsehood. Reality is speaking for itself” He said and added that today the same HAL is making modern Tejas for Indian Armed forces and is a center of global attraction and bolstering India’s aatmanirbharta in the defence sector.

The Prime Minister said that the Industrial township is a huge gift to Tumakuru after the Food Park and HAL which will help in developing Tumakuru as a big industrial center of the country. The Prime Minister expressed happiness that the township is being developed under PM Gatishakti Masterplan which will be connected with multimodal connectivity via Mumbai-Chennai Highway, Bengaluru Airport, Tumakuru Railway station, Manguluru Port.

“The Double Engine government is paying equal attention to social infrastructure as it is giving to physical infrastructure”, Shri Modi said. Throwing light on this year’s budget, the Prime Minister informed that the budget allocation for Jal Jeevan Mission has seen an increase of 20,000 crores from last year and said that the biggest beneficiaries of this scheme are the mothers and sisters who do not have to travel afar to fetch water for their homes. He highlighted that in the last three years, the scope of the project has increased from 3 crore rural families to 11 crore rural families. Highlighting the commitment of the double-engine government, the Prime Minister noted that Rs 5,500 crores have been allocated for the Upper Bhadra Project which will benefit Tumakuru, Chickmangaluru, Chitradurga, Davangere and the drought-affected areas of central Karnataka. The Prime Minister also highlighted the benefits to the farmers who are dependent on rainwater.

The Prime Minister said that this year’s middle-class-friendly budget will give strength to  everyone’s efforts for the  ‘Viksit Bharat’. “This budget is a big step in the direction of Samarth Bharat, Sampann Bharat, Swayampurna Bharat, Shaktiman Bharat, Gatiwan Bharat. This is a popular, all-encompassing, all-inclusive budget that touches everyone” the Prime Minister said. He elaborated on the benefits of the budget for the deprived, youth, and women in agriculture. “We kept in mind all three aspects,  your needs, assistance to be provided to you and your income”, he said.

The Prime Minister emphasized the efforts of the government since 2014 to empower that section of society for whom getting government assistance was a difficult task. “Either the government schemes did not reach them, or it was looted by middlemen”, the Prime Minister said as he highlighted the assistance extended by his government to every section, which was earlier deprived of it. The Prime Minister said that it is for the first time that the ‘employee-labour’ class has got the facility of pension and insurance. He touched upon the PM-Kisan Samman Nidhi for helping small farmers and mentioned the loans availed by street vendors. Observing that this year’s budget takes the same spirit forward, the Prime Minister highlighted the PM Vikas Yojna which will allow craftsmen or Vishwakaramas such as Kumbara, Kammara, Akkasaliga, Shilpi, Garekelasdava, Badgi and others, those who build something with the skill of their hands and hand tools, further enrich their art and skills.

The Prime Minister listed many measures to help the deprived and poor. The Government has spent 4 lakh crore rupees on free ration for the poor during the pandemic. Unprecedented 70 thousand crore rupees have been allocated for housing for the poor.

Highlighting the provisions of the Budget that will benefit the Middle class, the Prime Minister explained the tax benefits in income tax. “There is a lot of enthusiasm in the middle class due to zero income tax on income up to Rs 7 lakh. Especially young people below 30 years, who have a new job, new business, more money will come into their account every month”, he said. Similarly, doubling the deposit limit to 30 lakhs from 15 lakhs will help retired employees and senior citizens. Tax rebate on leave encashment is now for up to 25 lakhs against 3 lakhs earlier.

Emphasizing the centrality of the financial inclusion of women, the Prime Minister said “Financial inclusion of women strengthens their voice in households and increases their participation in household decisions. In this budget, we have taken big steps for our mothers, sisters and daughters to join more and more banks. We have come up with Mahila Samman Saving Certificates.” This, the Prime Minister said, is a big initiative for the economic empowerment of women after Sukanya Samriddhi, Mudra, Jan-Dhan Scheme and PM Awas.

The Prime Minister emphasized that the maximum focus of this budget is on the rural economy while assisting the farmers at every step through digital technology or expanding cooperatives. He said that it will benefit the farmers, animal herders and fishermen while the sugarcane farmers of Karnataka will get help in setting up sugarcane cooperatives. He informed that many new cooperative societies will also be formed and a large number of stores will be built across the country for the storage of food grains in the near future. This will allow even the small farmers to store their grain and sell it at a better price. The Prime Minister noted that thousands of help centers are also being set up to reduce the cost of small farmers through natural farming.

The Prime Minister observed the importance of millets in Karnataka and said that the country is forwarding the same belief where coarse grains have been given the identity of  ‘Shri Anna’. He also highlighted the emphasis given on the production of millets in this year’s Budget and said that it will greatly benefit the small farmers of Karnataka

Chief Minister of Karnataka, Shri Basvaraj Bommai, Union Minister for Defence, Shri Rajnath Singh, Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment, Shri A Narayanaswamy, and Ministers from Karnataka Government were present on the occasion among others. DeshGujarat