Basavakalyan project: Case of misplaced priorities?

Description

Context: While Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa has laid the foundation stone for ‘New Anubhava Mantapa’ in Basavakalyan, questions have been raised about the priorities of the government.

Historical Background:

The kalyani (also called Tripuranta lake) at Basavakalyan in Bidar district is a shadow of its former glory. Built by the Kalyani Chalukya kings, who gave the town its name, a large part of the kalyani is dry because the feeder channels have been blocked. They have not been cleaned for years, while developers have created residential layouts in the watershed.
Despite its connection with Basaveshwara, the 12th century reformer and saint-poet, the town remains as backward as the Kalyana Karnataka region.
Basavakalyan, which was the seat of the Kalyani Chalukyas, has several tourist attractions.
The Raja Bag Sawar Dargah and the Mallikarjun Swami Dargah are centres of multi-faith worship.
The Basavanna temple, the Anubhava Mantapa, and the giant cement statue of Basavanna on the main road attract the faithful in large numbers.