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Karnataka ministers shed flab with herbal drink

M D Riti in Bangalore

When Karnataka Chief Minister S M Krishna announced in his budget speech that he would ensure that his government would "lose its flab" quickly, he did not expect his ministers to take him quite so literally.

Ad hoc surveys and casual conversations in the lobbies of Vidhana Soudha during the recent assembly session in Bangalore revealed that quite a few Congress ministers have started consuming a herbal drink sponsored by an American company that promises to "burn cholestrol" and reduce weight quickly.

It is not that Krishna has actually told his overweight ministers to shed those extra kilos. But the general image-consciousness of Krishna has helped in motivating the ministers to actually try and smarten up their physical selves.

Among these ministers was reportedly Krishna's right hand man, Co-operation Minister D K Shivakumar, whose girth increased gradually along with his rise in power and status over the past year or so.

A happy Shivakumar revealed that he had actually shed 12 kilograms in five or six weeks. It is not that he was reluctant to try the conventional approach of exercise or dieting, he hastens to add, conscious of his leader's well-known fondness for sports, especially spectator sports. It is just that he could not find time to fit regular exercise into his daily routine.

Two other cabinet ministers quickly followed suit. Industry Minister R V Deshpande and Women and Child Welfare Minister C Motamma. So did three Ministers of State Allum Veerabhadrappa (Horticulture), Suma Vasanth (Planning) and B Ramanath Rai (Ports and Fisheries). They too now insist that the drink has helped them drop pounds.

Not surprisingly, given that this seems to be a trend amongst Congressmen, P G R Sindhia, floor leader of the Janata Dal-United in Karnataka, declared quite scornfully that he does not believe in any miracle herbal drinks.

He is convinced that a brisk morning walk followed by a session of yoga would benefit him far more than any herbal drinks. However, quite a few middle-level Bharatiya Janata Party leaders admitted to being on the same drink.

Most Karnataka chief ministers, with the glaring exception of the last one, J H Patel, have been fairly fitness and image conscious, and have tried to sustain one form of exercise or another even when they were in power.

Former Union commerce minister Ramakrishna Hegde, during his tenure as CM 15 years ago, was known to diligently go on a fast walk at the Indian Institute of Science every morning, and this correspondent has accompanied him more than once, and watched with amusement how various favour-seekers would try to accost him, pretending to have bumped into him accidentally.

Former chief minister Sarekoppa Bangarappa was known to never miss his daily game of badminton, no matter where he was. His tour programmes within Karnataka would usually include games in his agenda. He too had all kinds of people from government officials seeking his signature to the usual petitioners trying to accost him between games. Even now, he maintains good personal gymnasiums in his Bangalore and Delhi homes.

Krishna himself was once a regular tennis player. He used to try and play tennis both in Bangalore and Delhi during his stints there as Union minister and Rajya Sabha member. He now maintains a keen spectator interest in the sport, and has told rediff.com more than once how he mainly looks for tennis information whenever he surfs the net.

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