Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar announces exclusive secretariats to address public grievances and issues of NRIs

Chief Minister DK Shivakumar has a meeting with officials at Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru on Thursday. | Photo credit: special arrangement

New Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, who started work on his first day after taking oath, held a meeting with senior officials on Thursday and announced that his government will set up two exclusive secretariats, one to address public grievances and the other to deal with issues related to NRIs.

After a meeting with senior officials, including the police and the forest department, Mr. Shivakumar said the proposed public grievance redressal secretariat would be headed by a minister.

This will mainly deal with the requirements of organizations and associations that organize protests. The Secretariat will hold meetings with representatives of the protesting organizations, examine whether their demands were justified and seek solutions to them.

NRI investment

The Chief Minister also said that another exclusive secretariat would be set up to deal with issues related to NRIs. Appropriate changes would also be made in relevant laws to make it easier for NRIs to invest in Karnataka, he said.

Asserting that his government would not yield to any caste and religious influences or coercion, he asked the bureaucracy to work towards ensuring good governance by responding to the aspirations and problems of the people.

He urged officials not to succumb to pressure from all sides. “I want you not to deviate from the legal framework by giving in to pressure. Work transparently and according to your conscience,” he said.

He directed the district secretaries to submit proposals within 25 days for the works that could be started in their districts within the available financial resources. He asked them to regularly visit not only the district headquarters but also all the talukas under the districts allotted to them.

He ordered all the ministries to submit an action plan within 15 days for the programs to be adopted, including those listed in the national budget.

“Abuse” of the scheme

Referring to queries regarding collection of details of consumers who are beneficiaries of free power under the Gruha Jyothi scheme, Mr. Shivakumar said there are complaints that some consumers are misusing the free power for commercial purposes. Similarly, some of them had more electricity meters in their name. Therefore, data was being collected in this regard to help streamline the system, he noted.

The police have asked to set up anti-noise squads in every taluk

Every taluk in the state will now have an anti-noise squad as Mr. Shivakumar on Thursday issued instructions to senior police officials in this regard.

Briefing reporters after meeting senior officials in Bengaluru on Thursday, the chief minister said each unit should have about 10 members and deal with anti-social elements.

Mr Shivakumar said he had asked the officials for a report on the implementation of the six new schemes he had announced shortly after he was sworn in as Chief Minister on Wednesday.

The chief minister expressed concern that while there were indications that ₹8,000 crore of CSR funds were being spent in Karnataka, there was no clue as to where exactly it was being spent.

Therefore, the government has decided to ask the relevant authorities to provide details of the CSR funds spent and ensure their utilization for government schools.

Published – 04 Jun 2026 21:14 IST