Vajpayee hails Hegde's contribution to nation

By Our Special Correspondent

BANGALORE, AUG. 28. The Prime Minister, Mr. A.B.Vajpayee, has hailed Mr. Ramakrishna Hegde, who is completing 75 years on Wednesday, as one of the eminent personalities in Indian politics.

In a lengthy message congratulating Mr. Hegde, the Prime Minister has lauded in particular his contribution to the evolution of multi-party democracy in the country and strengthening the panchayati raj institutions.

Mr. Hegde belonged to that diminishing community of leaders which was baptized in the fire of India's freedom struggle and which continues to be active in the country's parliamentary and political life. At a very young age, he became a minister in the erstwhile Mysore State and soon made a name for himself for his erudition and administrative acumen. It was not long before he gained national recognition. Mr. Hegde's finest hour came in his successful struggle against the Emergency in the mid-Seventies. To Mr. Hegde goes, principally, the credit for bringing the first non-Congress government to office in Karnataka, he said.

Mr. Vajpayee said that Mr. Hegde's efforts to strengthen panchayati raj institutions were path-breaking. He was a strong votary of decentralisation and his efforts as Chief Minister of Karnataka were in some ways the harbinger for the 73rd and 74th amendments to the Constitution.

In that context, the Prime Minister said that even a decade after the passage of those constitutional amendments, the nation was yet to achieve the objective of strengthening grassroots democracy satisfactorily.

``We need to learn from the pluses and minuses of the experience in various States and take appropriate measures to devolve adequate administrative and financial powers to the panchayati raj institutions. Specific responsibilities should be transferred to them in the implementation of policies already identified in the Constitution.''

Mr. Vajpayee said that he had had the pleasure of a long and close association with Mr. Hegde. He was gentle and soft-spoken, and had endeared himself to a large number of people belonging to different political parties. The many offices he had graced, in Karnataka and at the Centre, was a testimony to his distinguished service to the nation.

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Section  : Southern States
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