Pics: Spoorthi Ullal

Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru (LDS)

Mangaluru, Jul 4: Former MLA J R Lobo on Monday July 2, expressed the immediate need to address various issues causing much inconvenience to the public and sought the concerned authorities’ attention towards it.

Lobo emphasised on the central topic of the day, which was the worrisome condition of the city, owing to the incessant rains in the city and the adverse problems posed by it.

He said that during the past one week the coastal district had witnessed torrential rains and the problems associated with it. He blamed the ruling party for not having addressed this issue and the resultant mismanagement of the concerned authorities. “Rains are not a new thing. The months of June and July have frequently seen the heaviest downpours. But, what is concerning is the mismanagement that has been observed in tackling this situation. It is high time we consider this worrying issue as we have observed including the obstructions faced by pedestrians, the vehicular traffic and to top it all the pothole menace,” he said.

He asked as to who was responsible for the present situation. He emphasised that the smart city plan had not been initiated well and exclaimed that the plans were unscientific and lacked proper planning. He added that the prevailing condition was testimony to the inappropriate management of the ruling party.

Further, he spoke about yet another problem which sought immediate action and that was about the foul smell emanating from the mismanagement of waste. He said that the work ought to be done well beforehand. The events should have been planned in advance to avoid any problems ahead. The authorities are aware of the places that get filled up with water or face stagnation. “Dutifully, they should have taken the accurate steps to tackle the issue at the earliest. As observed, any road must be asphalted well in time and not be delayed through the monsoon, when all the work would go a waste. Now the situation is only pathetic, to say the least. It is surprising to find that the authorities do not have one pang to remorse over this issue,” he said.

The amusing thing was that lately, they had been tarring the roads, while rains continued. This was indeed illogical as the rains would wash away the layer and all would go in vain, Lobo said.

“It requires an elaborate process and planning well in advance. They have ruined all the concrete roads, and also one must turn towards understanding that the money shelled out for these purposes has also gone misspent. The whopping amount that had been deducted for this unscientific action has only been wasted,” he opined.

Speaking of the other issues, he mentioned that Padil, Pumpwell, Kannur, Jyothi were the places water would cease to flow as observed frequently. He said that the authorities had been keenly observing these occurrences, but when the same places invited the same problems each year, they ought to be addressed at the earliest. He added that proper channels and drains need to be constructed to ward off different problems.

He exclaimed that this was only because of the carelessness of the higher authorities. There were various problems such as the smart city plan, which had barely been implemented properly, restoration of roads, and mismanagement of the authorities and lack of advanced planning.

Explaining the foul smell problem, he mentioned that the Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) must act responsibly and not be driven by other motives. He insisted that the labour department must assure the workers of their benefits as enlisted by the factory act, such as ESI, PF, Gratuity, pension, structure of work, leaves and other facilities. He opined that law must be same to both the private and government undertakings.

“In 2002, I reached out to more than 90 workers. I took them to the apex level as well. They have their own rights, which the government must come forward with, especially the private factories must adhere to the rules and so should the government act on this issue at the earliest.

I wish that management who is in charge of this should act on it at the earliest. They must address the public to render their support at this time,” he said.