Bengaluru, Jun 27 (PTI) Former Karnataka Chief Minister S M Krishna, Infosys founder N R Narayan Murthy, and Badminton legend Prakash Padukone were conferred the maiden Kempegowda International Award on Monday.CM Basavaraj Bommai presented the award, instituted by the state government in honour of Kempegowda, founder of Bengaluru, for their contribution to the growth of the city.Sudha Murty on behalf of Narayan Murthy and Badminton coach U Vimal Kumar on behalf of Padukone received the award which carries a purse of Rs five lakh.Speaking on the occasion, marking the 513th birth anniversary of Kempegowda, Bommai said a good tradition has been started to remember the person who founded Bengaluru city.“I consider that today is the day to introspect how we have shaped the city.Kempegowda brought together many villages and helped communities to grow here. This is the sign of a person with farsightedness,” the Chief Minister said.He also said Nadaprabhu Kempegowda"s statue would be installed in front of Vidhana Soudha by next year.On another statue of Kempegowda at the Bengaluru International Airport, Bommai said it will be unveiled along with the inauguration of Terminal-2 of the airport."We are keen to get it unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The state government has already released Rs 85 crore for the statue works and another Rs 23 crore has been granted for the beautification around the statue, which includes works to showcase the history and contributions of Kempegowda,” Bommai noted.Pointing to the rapid growth of Bengaluru, the Chief Minister said about 5,000 new vehicles are hitting the road every day in the city. The number of vehicles in the city has overtaken the population of the city.The city has grown upto 30-40kms from its core in all directions. Providing basic amenities like power and water at this pace is a daunting task, he said."We are working on plans with a vision for the next 40 years to improve the transport, basic infrastructure and development of satellite towns." He also underlined that the city needs to be developed without losing its native character. PTI GMS ROH ROH