Mysuru: “It is literally true that former Chief Minister late D. Devaraj Urs lent voice to voiceless and marginalised sections of the society during his tenure as the CM,” said MLC Dr. D. Thimmaiah.

He was speaking after inaugurating ‘Dhwani Kotta Dhani’ award ceremony organised jointly by Anveshana Seva Trust and Ursu Jagruti Academy Charitable Trust, at Institution of Engineers-India (IEI) on JLB Road here on Friday, marking the 110th birth anniversary of late former CM D. Devaraj Urs.

“Devaraj Urs always stood with the marginalised, micro, downtrodden and other voiceless communities, when it came to extending rights, benefits and facilities. Urs is still remembered for his outstanding  and exemplary service to the society while in power. Most of the politicians these days have homes in big cities like Bengaluru and Mysuru. But Urs did not have any house in the State capital or other big cities. However, his memory is etched in the minds of everyone and it still stands fresh,” Dr. Thimmaiah noted.

Highlighting the revolutionary  decisions taken by Urs while in power such as elimination of bonded labour, ban on manual scavenging and introduction of  ‘Uluvavane Bhumi Odeya’ Act (the tiller is the actual land  owner), the MLC said it was D.D. Urs who gave land to the landless and provided shelter to the shelterless. His contributions and achievements are memorable at the National-level even today, he added.

Educationist Bhramara Bahaddur from Bengaluru, Karnataka Karavali Samskrutika Okkuta Founder Dr. Jagannatha Shetty from Mandya, senior yoga teacher Jagadish Shettar from Dakshina Kannada, Star of Mysore and Mysuru Mithra Photographer M.N. Lakshminarayana Yadav from Mysuru, Goa Liberation Movement fighter Girija Shankar Patil from Koppal and Kodagu Institute of Medical Sciences (Madikeri) Associate Professor Dr. Anand from Kodagu were conferred ‘Dhwani Kotta Dhani’ awards on the occasion.

Charitable Trust Vice-President H.A. Venkatesh, Hon. Secretary Dr. MGR Urs, former Tumkur University VC Dr. Y.S. Siddegowda, Anveshana Seva Trust Founder-President Amarnath Raje Urs, former Bengaluru Kanteerava Studios Chairperson Vijayalakshmi Urs and others were present.