D. Devaraj Urs
Encyclopedia
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
politics for many years and was twice Chief Minister
Chief Minister
A Chief Minister is the elected head of government of a sub-national state, provinces of Sri Lanka, Pakistan, notably a state of India, a territory of Australia or a British Overseas Territory that has attained self-government...
of the state. Originally from Mysore, he was a member of what came to be known as the 'Syndicate' of powerful regional leaders, though he never went as far as, for example, Kamaraj, in opposition to Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhara was an Indian politician who served as the third Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms and a fourth term . She was assassinated by Sikh extremists...
. He is particularly remembered for his reforms that targeted the scheduled castes and the OBC
OBC
OBC is a three-letter abbreviation with multiple meanings, including:*OBC , the DJ/Rapper duo consisting of NowWeJankin and Tweed Blazer*OBC secret society, a secret society at the University of North Carolina at Asheville...
s of Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
, and for his constant pipe-smoking.
Urs had practically retired from politics when the first Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
split took place in 1969, and the Syndicate formed the Congress (O) while Mrs. Gandhi formed the Congress (I). The Congress (O), under S. Nijalingappa
S. Nijalingappa
Siddavanahalli Nijalingappa was a senior Congress politician and the Chief Minister of Karnataka between 1956 and 1958 and once again between 1962 and 1968...
, Veerendra Patil
Veerendra Patil
Veerandra Patil was Chief Minister of Karnataka state of India twice. The first time was from 1968 - 1971; and the second time was almost 20 years later from 1989 - 1990. He was elected several times from Chincholi assembly constituency of Gulbarga district to Karnataka state legislative assembly...
, Ramakrishna Hegde
Ramakrishna Hegde
Ramakrishna Mahabaleshwar Hegde was an Indian politician who served as the Chief Minister of Karnataka for three terms and as Minister of Commerce and Industry in the Union government.-Early life:...
and Deve Gowda dominated Karnataka electorally and had a majority in the state assembly, but Urs declined the invitation to join it. Instead, he agreed to lead the Congress (I) in the state and successfully won the state for Mrs. Gandhi in 1971.
In response to Mrs. Gandhi's declaration that poverty was her first priority (Garibi Hatao) and her Twenty-Point Programme, he formed a state Cabinet dominated by technocrats and academics.
His first priority was land reform, and his slogan was "land to the tiller"; under him a sustained effort was made to equalize the land distribution through much of the state. Karnataka, thus, other than the Communist bastions of Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
and West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
, has had one of the most successful land redistributions in the country. A side effect of this was to break the power of the Lingayats and Vokkaliga
Vokkaliga
The Vokkaligas are an Indian caste or social group found mainly in the Old Mysore Region of southern Karnataka state. In Tamil Nadu they are known as Okkaligar and use Gowder as a title...
s, the previously dominant caste
Caste
Caste is an elaborate and complex social system that combines elements of endogamy, occupation, culture, social class, tribal affiliation and political power. It should not be confused with race or social class, e.g. members of different castes in one society may belong to the same race, as in India...
s, over local politics. He was helped in his endeavours by his son-in-law Dr M. D. Nataraj
M. D. Nataraj
Dr M.D. Nataraj was the son in law of late Devaraj Urs , the ex chief minister of Karnataka. He was instrumental in establishing the iron grip of Devaraj Urs in state politics by forming the notorious "Indira Brigade" with the former Bangalore underworld don M.P.Jayaraj at its helm...
.
Other schemes included the building of shelters for migrant workers; the forgiveness of rural debt; and, in a populist masterstroke, a plan to have an electric bulb in every house. When R. K. Baliga
R. K. Baliga
Ram Krishna Baliga is regarded as the father of the Electronics City in Bangalore, India.- Academic Role :Manipal Institute of Technology...
, Founder of the Electronics City proposed the concept of developing the electronic city in the early 1970s it was met with skepticism but Devaraj Urs supported him and approved the project. This initial seed investment by the Karnataka State Government in 1976 laid the foundation for the Electronics City.
In 1978, however, he exited the Congress (I), which had crashed out of power. He had quarreled with Indira Gandhi, and was appearing before the Supreme Court
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India...
in Karnataka vs. Union of India, and thus felt the time was right to cut his losses and leave the Congress. This was a miscalculation; although many legislators in Karnataka, Kerala and Goa went with him - such as A.K. Antony, Sharad Pawar
Sharad Pawar
Sharadchandra Govindrao Pawar , popularly known as SAHEB , is the president of the Nationalist Congress Party which he founded in 1999, after separating from the Indian National Congress...
, Priyaranjan Das Munshi and K.P. Unnikrishnan. Mrs. Gandhi swept back to power at the national level and the fledgling Congress (Urs) was routed. Urs subsequently joined the Janata Party
Janata Party
The Janata Party was an amalgam of Indian political parties opposed to the state of emergency imposed by the government of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her Indian National Congress...
, and his protege Ramakrishna Hegde
Ramakrishna Hegde
Ramakrishna Mahabaleshwar Hegde was an Indian politician who served as the Chief Minister of Karnataka for three terms and as Minister of Commerce and Industry in the Union government.-Early life:...
recaptured power in Karnataka from the Congress in 1984. The Congress (Urs) itself became Congress (S) in 1983.
Dates in power
During the Fifth Assembly of Karnataka State, D. Devaraj Urs was the Chief MinisterChief Minister
A Chief Minister is the elected head of government of a sub-national state, provinces of Sri Lanka, Pakistan, notably a state of India, a territory of Australia or a British Overseas Territory that has attained self-government...
from 20-03-1972 to 31-12-1977. President's rule was imposed from 31-12-1977 to 28-02-1978, following Mrs. Gandhi's fall. The Sixth Assembly lasted its five-year term, from 17 March 1978 to 8 June 1983. Devraj Urs was Chief Minister from 28-02-1978 to 07-01-1980, when he was succeeded by R. Gundu Rao
R. Gundu Rao
R. Gundu Rao was Chief Minister of Karnataka state, India from 1980 to 1983.Rao was born in Kushalnagar, Kodagu, India. His parents were K. Rama Rao and Chinamma. His father was a local Headmaster. He studied in Ammathi High school for a while. He was Town Municipal President of Kushalanagar...
.
Accomplishments
D. Devaraj Urs espoused the cause poor and ushered in a "silent social revolution" in the state of Karnataka. He was the voice of the poor and stood for the cause of the downtrodden in society.That Urs was elected continuously from Hunsur as an MLA for 28 years, from 1952 to 1980, spoke of volumes of his popularity. He was one of the longest serving Chief Ministers of the State.
Among the contributions of the late Chief Minister was the stress laid on the education of the people belonging to the backward classes and establishment of the backwards and minorities hostels for the students hailing from those sections of society.
Absorbing 16,000 unemployed graduates in the stipendiary scheme whose services were confirmed later, abolition of carrying night soil
Night soil
Night soil is a euphemism for human excrement collected at night from cesspools, privies, etc. and sometimes used as a fertilizer. Night soil is produced as a result of a waste management system in areas without community infrastructure such as a sewage treatment facility, or individual septic...
by Dalits and bonded labour, renaming of Mysore as Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
in 1973 were some landmark decisions taken by him.
D. Devaraj Urs was one of the greatest social reformers the State had seen. The land reforms spearheaded by him, in which the tiller of the land became the owner, was exemplary. It had reduced the chasm between the rich and the poor, doing away with social inequality.
Mysore district had the highest incidents of bonded labour in India during that time and the decision of the Urs Government to abolish it was remarkable. Urs must be remembered for his achievements in weaning away poor people from the clutches of the rich moneylenders. The deeds of the late Chief Minister in the irrigation sector too had helped the farmer community tremendously. The Kali project, one of them, was executed amidst opposition from several quarters.