For over a century, during the reign of the Wodeyar royals of Mysuru, Central Karnataka was a vibrant industrial hub away from Bengaluru. Today, the three districts that comprise the region — Shivamogga, Davangere and Chitradurga — feel betrayed and neglected by political parties.

Each district has the imprint of an individual: the BJP’s chief ministerial candidate BS Yeddyurappa holds sway in Shivamogga; Davangere is the fiefdom of Congress veteran and Veerashaiva leader Shamnur Shivashankarappa’s clan; and the MP from Ballari, B Sriramulu is looking to build a position in Chitradurga.

Industry feels let down

After industrial activity took off under Wodeyar rule and sustained post Independence, many industrial units are now shut or on the verge of closure. The business community feels emotive issues, such as the minority religion tag for the Lingayat-Veerashaiva community, have taken the spotlight away from pressing matters of industry.

“Political party after political party has come to Shivamogga this election season, but not one has spoken about reviving sick industries or bringing in investments,” says hotelier Muralidhararas. “The development of industries improves the per capita income and ushers in all-round development of the region. Shivamogga had been a beneficiary of this for over a century.”

The district had had a vibrant ecosystem comprising sugar mills, match factories, paper mills and an iron and steel plant. Some investment in IT and ITeS has come to Shivamogga. But with many industrial units on the verge of a shut-down, more people have become dependent on agriculture.

“During Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s rally in Shivamogga, we were waiting for announcements of some kind: a package for revival of the VISL or the Mysore Paper Mill, but there was nothing,” said Muralidhararas.

The only consolation was Amit Shah’s announcement, during an address to farmers in March, of a ₹500-crore study centre on arecanut cultivation in Shivamogga.

Davanagere, situated on the plains of the Bhadra, once had a happening textile mills cluster. But due to globalisation and its failure to modernise, they, too, are facing closure. Now, the district has morphed into an educational and an agro-based industrial hub.

The Chitradurga district, with its groundnut cultivation, had a vibrant oil mill cluster. The financial sickness of mills, and unviability of operating oil mills, forced many to close. It is now a ghost district for industries.

In the last decade, the district saw some activity in iron-ore related mining. Chitradurga has also become conducive for investments in wind energy, with several major companies investing substantially. Recently, the DRDO and the IISc set up a 3,000-acre Aeronautical Test Range (ATR) at Challakere.

Political landscape

In the 2013 elections, the Congress won 14 of the 21 seats in the district, the BJP, two, the JD(S) four seats, and the erstwhile BSR Congress, one. BS Yeddyurappa’s KJP, which later merged into the BJP, had then eaten into the parent party’s vote share.

This time around, the BJP and the Congress will square off in Davanagere and Chitradurga, whereas the JD(S) makes it a three-cornered contest in Shivamogga.

Yeddyurappa’s return to the BJP has boosted the saffron party’s prospects, and it hopes to increase its tally in the region. Led by BJP President Amit Shah, the party is carrying out a sustained campaign to regain its lost glory.

With little to show on the industrial scorecard, the Congress is banking on its welfare and social measures to see it through: the issue of land titles to Bagar hokum cultivators and the Bhagya schemes, which are mainly meant for the backward classes, the SCs and STs who are in sizeable numbers.

The BJP, on the other hand, has been pointing to the Congress ‘weakness’ and its non-performance in key irrigational and drinking-water projects.

With many pending irrigation projects and increased electoral activity, the region is set witness hectic politicking after the Assembly elections.

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