Daijiworld Media Network – Koppal

Koppal, Jul 6: In a remark that has stirred political controversy across Karnataka, chief minister’s economic advisor Basavaraja Rayareddy has hinted at the state's financial constraints, indirectly suggesting that ongoing guarantee schemes are hampering development, including road infrastructure projects.

Speaking at the inauguration of a high school building in Ryavanika, Kukanur taluk in Koppal district, Rayareddy responded to a farmer's request for a road to his farm by stating, “You want roads, then the guarantee schemes — including the free rice — will have to stop. You have the rice paddy of the guarantee scheme; let’s use that money to build roads.”

This statement, perceived as a veiled admission of the state’s fund crunch post-guarantee scheme implementation, has raised eyebrows and sparked criticism. Rayareddy’s comment appears to suggest a direct trade-off between welfare schemes and developmental infrastructure, something that has now provided fresh ammunition for the opposition parties to corner the ruling government.

Over the past months, several MLAs within the ruling party had expressed concerns over the financial sustainability of the state’s ambitious guarantee schemes. Rayareddy’s latest remarks have only fueled those debates, prompting questions on whether the guarantees, while beneficial to the public, are eating into Karnataka’s development budget.

With the opposition quick to seize on his comments, political analysts believe this could deepen the discourse on fiscal priorities, especially as the state prepares for its next budgetary planning.