The Karnataka Legislature began its winter session on December 8 by paying respects to six notable personalities who passed away recently. The tributes included environmentalist Saalumarada Thimmakka, Kannada novelist S.L. Bhyrappa, and former Minister H.Y. Meti. Also remembered were Kannada actor M.S. Umesh, known for his comedy roles, and former MLAs R.V. Devaraj and Shivasharanappagouda Patil. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah praised Thimmakka and her husband for planting saplings along a 4-km stretch of State Highway 94 in Karnataka, treating the trees as their own children. He announced the government’s plan to set up a museum in Thimmakka’s name in Belur and institute an environmental award in her honor starting 2026. Describing Dr. S. L. Bhyrappa as one of India’s most popular novelists, the Chief Minister said, "I personally had respect towards him though we had ideological differences." He added a memorial will be built for Bhyrappa in Mysuru. Siddaramaiah also called former minister H.Y. Meti "his loyalist" and said his death was a personal loss. Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H. K. Patil proposed including a lesson about Thimmakka in school textbooks. Congress MLA H.C. Balakrishna, representing Magadi where Thimmakka nurtured trees, appealed to develop her house as a memorial. Speaker U. T. Khader and Opposition Leader R. Ashok also paid tribute to the departed. The house observed a minute of silence in their memory.