JEDDAH — Expatriates from Karnataka, a southern state of India, felicitated their Hajj, Information and Infrastructure Development Minister Roshan Baig at the inauguration ceremony of the Karnataka Noble Trophy Cricket tournament. The tournament will begin from November 27 and wrap up with the final match on December 5.
Roshan Rodrigues, president of KNRI forum, officially welcomed the minister and highlighted the aims and objectives of KNRI forum and Jamiyatul Falah, which strives hard to help the poor and needy persons in Karnataka by providing them with education and medical treatment.
Baig, who was the chief guest at the ceremony, appreciated the social activities initiated by KNRI forum and Jamiyatul Falah.
Proud of the Karanataka community
The minister said he met with the Karnataka community here and was elated to witness that more people from his state have white collar jobs as compared to other Indian states.
"Kannadigas are also keeping themselves busy with social work like helping the poor and needy people back home.
“I have met Roshan Rodrigues, Nasir Khursheed, Mohammed Shafi, Shaikh Saud and other office bearers of KNRI forum and Jamiyatu Falah; they are doing a tremendous job by helping the poor people in Karnataka," said Baig.
'Respect the law of the land'
Rodrigues spoke with the minister about the various problems faced by Kannadigas during the functioning of the "Nitaqat" program in the Kingdom.
Commenting on the “Nitaqat” program, Baig said: "I believe this is a balanced approach by the Kingdom which ensures that the Kingdom's economic and social interest is maintained, while the interest of investors and foreign laborers are also not harmed. I was informed that the Indian Embassy and Consulate worked very hard to help the Indian community in correcting their status. I advice our nationals to respect the law of the land and keep their status as per the Saudi law. He added that he is always available to help and sort the problems of non-residents of India.
Political career
Talking about his political career, Baig said that it all began in the 70s when he was still a student at the RC College, where he had enrolled himself for an undergraduate program, Bachelor of Commerce. He had then contested his first election for a class representative and had won.
"During that time I came in contact with Ramesh Kumar (former speaker), R Gundu Rao (former Chief Minister of Karnataka), M Raghupathy (former minister), and F M Khan (former Rajya Sabha member). In 1973, I contested the college elections for the position of general secretary and defeated K C N Chandrashekar, a noted film producer at present,” said Baig, who was also an active member of the NSUI (National Students Union of India and Youth Congress.)"
Baig's political idol was then late chief minister of Karnataka D Devaraj Urs, whose commitment, attitude and style inspired him. Indira Gandhi, late Prime Minister of Indian was also a source of major influence for Baig, who inspired him to join the Indian National Congress."
Major achievements
The minister has a score of major achievements to his credit. He started direct flights from Bangalore to Jeddah. Earlier, the pilgrims faced difficulty in traveling to Jeddah because there were then only four embarkation points — Mumbai, New Delhi, Chennai and Kolkata. He made Bangalore as the fifth embarkation point for pilgrims in India to travel to Jeddah.
As a Home Minister, he set up a coastal police force for patrolling between Karwar to Mangalore, which he says is " purely my brainchild which has proved very effective till date from the security point of view"
Baig said: "Had this kind of patrolling been implemented in the neighboring state of Maharashtra, then incidents like 26/11 could have been avoided."
He also set up a residential school for children of the police force at Kalghatti, Dharwad, which is growing every year in strength and accomplishments.
Diplomatic relations between India, Saudi Arabia strong
At the ceremony, Baig extended his gratitude to King Abdullah and other government authorities for giving him an opportunity to attend the "ghusl" of the Kabah for the third time. He said trade and cultural relations between India and Saudi Arabia dates back to the third millennium BC.
"By 1000 AD, the trade relations between southern India and Arabia flourished and became the backbone of the Arabian economy. Arab traders held a monopoly over the spice trade between India and Europe until the rise of European imperialist empires. India was one of the first nations to establish ties with the Saudi State," said the minister.
He added: "Formal diplomatic relations between contemporary India and Saudi Arabia were established soon after India gained independence in 1947. Relations between the two countries have strengthened considerably owing to collaboration in regional affairs and trade. Saudi Arabia is one of the largest suppliers of oil to India, which is one of the top seven trading partners. The two countries share similar views on combating terrorism. The diplomatic and business relations are continuously growing till now."
Failure of Congress in the national elections
Baig said that during the Congress party's rule under the leadership of Dr. Manmohan Singh and under the patronage of UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, the party's schemes of Right to Education, Right to Information, Food security bill and Adhar card were appreciated all over the world.
"Everyone knows about the infrastructure development, and many schemes were introduced for the welfare of Indian citizens," he said, adding, "As it was an alliance coalition, owing to some scams and controversies of allied UPA partners, coupled with anti-incumbency and false propaganda by BJP party members contributed to the defeat of the Indian National Congress."
Ex-president of the KNRI forum Mohammed Mansour and president of Jamiyatul Falah Mohammed Shafi honored presented the chief guest with a bouquet as a token of appreciation. Mansour requested the minister to intervene and initiate arrangement for a direct flight from Jeddah to Mangalore.
On behalf of KNRI forum and Jamiyatul Falah, the vote of thanks was delivered by general secretary Syed Nasir Khursheed, who extended his appreciation to Vasim Khan, Salim Khan, Syed hakeel Ahmed and Mukkaram Khan for making necessary arrangements for the event. IT coordinator KNRI forum Saud Shaikh conducted the program.
