Karnataka: Six from DK, Udupi selected for prestigious Rajyotsava award

MANGALURU: Rajyotsava awards that minister for Kannada and culture CT Ravi announced on Monday have brought cheer to six personalities from erstwhile undivided Dakshina Kannada district in Karnataka.
They are BK Deva Rao, agriculturist, Shridhar Bhandary, yakshagana artist from Dakshina Kannada, and U Ramesh Rao, artist, BG Mohandas, founder of news portal GulfKannadiga.com, Dr K Krishnaprasad, ophthalmologist, and Vishwanatha Bhaskar Ganiga, weightlifter from Udupi district.

Shridhar Bhandary
Deva Rao has dedicated five acre of land exclusively for paddy seed preservation at Mittabagilu village in Belthangady taluk.
The paddy varieties that he has preserved for the last 35 years have grown to 154 and he is one among a few in the country having undertaken conservation on such large scale. One among the senior yakshagana artists, Bhandary born to Sheenappa Bhandary-Sundari couple in 1945, inherited Yakshagana legacy from his grandfather. He has also learnt Bharatanatyam.
Ramesh Rao, born in Udupi in 1948 in a family of artists to Ramakrishna Rao and Seethabai, was an art teacher at then Board High School, Udupi. An entirely self-taught painter, who has evolved his own individualistic style of painting that reflects real life, Rao founded Artists' Forum and Drishya School of Arts in Udupi. Mohandas, who initially worked with KMC Hospital, Manipal has brought together Kannadigas working in Gulf through Dubai Kannada Sangha and his web news portal.
Dr Krishnaprasad is the founder medical director of Prasad Netralaya, Udupi. He completed graduate and PG medical education at Davangere and also taught ophthalmology in few medical colleges.
Born in 1991 at Balikere village in Kundapur taluk, international weightlifter Ganiga developed penchant for weightlifting during college days and was encouraged by trainer Prashanth Shettigar. He bagged medals in the recent Commonwealth Bench press Powerlifting Championship.