Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar speaks at the CoSMOS planetarium inauguration in Mysuru. Image: CM D.K. Shivakumar’s media team
Mysuru: Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar urged the Centre to expedite the remaining statutory clearances for the Mekedatu project and withdraw the Kasturirangan report’s recommendations on the Western Ghats. Speaking at the CoSMOS planetarium inauguration in Mysuru on November 13, in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he also sought corporate social responsibility funding for 1,000 Karnataka Public Schools.
Referring to a Supreme Court ruling on Mekedatu, Shivakumar asked the Centre to expedite the approvals still required for the project. He said the Karnataka Legislature had unanimously opposed the Kasturirangan report after consultations and urged the Centre to withdraw its recommendations.
Shivakumar asked the Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs to align companies’ corporate social responsibility (CSR) spending with Karnataka’s guidelines and direct support to the schools. He cited figures that put migration for education and work at 31 per cent in 2002 and 47 per cent in 2026, and said it was projected to reach 70 per cent over the next two decades.
He asked the state science department to explore setting up a facility like CoSMOS in North Karnataka. He said Karnataka’s mobile digital planetarium had reached 19.21 lakh students and teachers. The state’s 2025–30 space technology policy supports startups, research, skills development and collaboration between academia and industry, he said, pointing to uses in agriculture, weather forecasting and disaster management.
Related coverage:
About the Author
