The Hindu

Mangalore, May 7: The controversy over the slaughter house in Mangalore city appears to have died down as quickly as it started. The controversial bidder Rajesh Shetty has withdrawn from the contract and subsequently the Mangalore City Corporation resumed the operations.

Commissioner of Mangalore City Corporation P Chandrappa told presspersons in an informal chat on Friday that the withdrawal had necessitated a fresh tender notification as there was no provision in the Act concerned to hand over the facility to the second bidder in the last bidding event. The corporation had forfeited Rs. 2 lac from the holder of the contract Shetty as fees for breach of contract.

Chandrappa said the corporation had already taken steps to restore the facilities at the slaughter house and emergency repairs had also taken up at a cost of Rs 3.5 lac.

The question of whether or not the slaughter house conforms to the directions of the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) however remains.

Chandrappa said once the repairs were completed and the certification system was in place there was no reason why the facility should not conform to the standards set by the pollution control board.

The BJP leader in the Mangalore City Corporation Council favoured moving the slaughter house out of the city. The Congress (ruling) in the council wanted the existing structure to be repaired and made hygienic as per the directives of the KSPCB.