D.K. Shivakumar seeks ‘fairness’ for Southern states in devolution and delimitation
Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar made a pitch for “fairness in funds, voice and respect” for Southern states, which form the “engine of the Indian economy”, addressing the 31st meeting of the Southern Zonal Council at Mahabalipuram, chaired by Home Minister Amit Shah. He forwarded the growth argument to demand both better devolution of taxes for southern states and fair representation in delimitation. The Chief Minister urged the Council to adopt a resolution calling upon the Union government to honour the 1971 census as the basis for delimitation, retain the Lok Sabha’s existing strength of 543 seats for the next 25 years, and accommodate women’s reservation within these existing seats, according to a communique by the CMO. South drives economy Speaking on financial strength of the south, Mr. Shivakumar pointed out that the five states accounted for nearly 33% of the country’s GDP despite having about 20% of its population. He highlighted Karnataka as one of the strongest drivers of this growth and said it accounted for 42% of India’s software exports, hosted around 1,100 …

