K'taka needs more devolution as it faces regional imbalances: Siddaramaiah

Karnataka requires greater devolution by the Centre as it faces regional imbalances, especially in the Kalyana Karnataka region, and the challenges of urbanisation, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said on Thursday. In his address to Chairman of the 16th Finance Commission Arvind Panagariya and its members at a meeting here, he said Bengaluru needs an investment of Rs 55,586 crore over the next five years out of which the State requested for a grant of Rs 27,793 crore. Similarly, for the equitable development of the Kalyana Karnataka region, the State is investing Rs 25,000 crore and requested a matching grant of Rs 25,000 crores over five years from the 16th Finance Commission. To ensure effective disaster mitigation and timely relief and rehabilitation measures in the highly vulnerable region of Western Ghats, the State requested a grant of Rs 10,000 crore. According to him, the 15th Finance Commission's award reduced Karnataka's share sharply from 4.713 to 3.647. This has led to a lo