Decision on HC Bench in Hubli stays

By Our Special Correspondent

BANGALORE, JULY 25. The State Cabinet today reiterated that there was no change in the Government's decision to set up a permanent Bench of the Karnataka High Court in Hubli-Dharwad despite the Supreme Court's dismissal of a writ petition in that regard on Monday.

At a long sitting here this evening, the Cabinet discussed at length the Supreme Court's ruling. It noted that the Government could not have restrained those who had approached the court through the writ petition - the Federation of Bar Associations of Karnataka. However, it took cognisance of the fact that the verdict had posed problems to the Government of India, which, according to a report from Delhi, had decided on setting up the Bench in Hubli-Dharwad.

The Minister of State for Information and Publicity, Dr. B. K. Chandrashekar, who briefed the press, said the opinion was that ``not all was lost.'' Even now the President could consult the Governor and the Chief Justice of Karnataka in terms of Section 51 of the States Reorganisation Act of 1956 and take a decision to establish the Bench. It was decided to renew the subject with the Chief Justice of the State at the appropriate time.

An important decision taken by the Cabinet was to ban recruitments to Government services until the newly constituted Administrative Reforms Commission came out with an interim report on the size of the Government. The Karnataka Public Service Commission could go ahead with the ongoing interviews for recruitment to Group A and B posts till July 31 (as scheduled by the Commission). However, the Government would not appoint those selected by the Commission immediately. It would await the reports of the Administrative Reforms Commission and also that of another going into the question of awarding grace marks to rural candidates. The appointments would also depend on vacancies in the departments (the KPSC is going ahead with the interviews ignoring the Chief Minister, Mr. S. M. Krishna's request to suspend them).

It was decided to set up a Cabinet sub-committee to recommend names to the Centre for the Padma awards.

The Cabinet decided to sanction the pay scales recommended by the All India Council of Technical Education to teachers in colleges of Indian systems of medicine and homoeopathy with effect from November 1, 1999.

Two decisions, which affect students, relate to increase in the fees prescribed for TCH (Teachers' Certificate Higher) and polytechnics. The annual fees will go up from Rs.750 to Rs.2000 for students in Government-run TCH colleges and from Rs.1500 to Rs.3000 (for Government seats in private aided institutions). Fees will increase to Rs. 8000 for the management seats in aided institutions, from Rs. 3000 to Rs. 7000 for Government seats in private, unaided institutions and up to Rs. 25,000 for management seats in those institutions. There would be a four or five fold increase in the various types of fees collected from polytechnic students.

Responding to appeals from the film industry, the meeting decided to reduce entertainment tax applicable to non- Kannada films from 100 per cent to 70 per cent. It had been increased to 100 per cent in the Budget for the current year. It was also decided to allow single point collection of State Excise duty and Sales Tax wherever the two were applicable for a period of six months.

Those accused of involvement in communal disturbances can now be proceeded against under the Goonda Act of 1985, according to another decision.

A scheme to provide Tungabhadra waters to Haveri town (a new district headquarters ) at a cost of Rs. 201 lakhs was also adopted.

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