The state government has announced setting up of Lakkundi Development Authority at a cost of Rs 3 crore.
The main objective of constituting the authority would be to showcase Lakkundi to the world as it has many attractions.
Lakkundi is a paradise of temples and it has artistically built step wells with small, canopied niches inside its walls that enshrine lingas. Lakkundi is also a prominent Jain centre with a sculpture gallery operated by the Archeological Survey of India.
Lakkundi, a village in Gadag district, was once the capital of Chalukyas of Kalyani and the birthplace of Attimabbe who patronised and encouraged Kannada literature and promoted Jainism. The state is already organising a two-day Lakkundi Utsav every year.
To preserve and promote Bayalata, a folk art form in rural areas, the government has decided to set up Bayalata Academy in North Karnataka.
The complete works of researcher Prof M M Kalburgi would also be published to honour his contribution towards the state. Kalburgi was shot dead by two unidentified men outside his Kalyan Nagar house in Dharwad on August 30, 2015. The complete works would be brought out by Fa Gu Halakatti Research Centre, Vijayapura.
“We wanted a research centre in the name of Prof M M Kalburgi. However, the decision to bring out Kalburgi’s works is a welcome step. The long-pending demands of Bayalata Academy and Manteswamy, Siddappaji and Rachappaji Study Centres have been fulfilled,” poet Prof Chandrashekhar Patil said.
The government has earmarked Rs 3 crore to encourage young playwrights writing stage plays related to challenges of children, while an amount of Rs 20 crore has been earmarked for the construction of new auditoriums and completion of the ongoing construction of auditoriums in all districts.
The government has announced construction of two memorials and an amount of Rs 2 crore has been earmarked for a memorial in Yadgir in memory of freedom fighter Kollur Mallappa. A sum of Rs 2 crore has also been earmarked for the construction of a memorial for Karnataka’s first Chief Minister K C Reddy.
Kannada Study Centre, JNU, New Delhi, would get Rs 5 crore as corpus funds for its maintenance.