Pics: Brijesh Garodi
Daijiworld Media Network – Mangalore (PS)
 
Mangalore, Jun 28: "In the wake of the increasing Naxal threats in the state, a balanced, integrated package will be provided to approximately 1,400 tribal families residing in the forest belt of  the Western Ghats in the state, including the Malekudiya families in the forest areas of Beltangady," said legislative assembly deputy speaker Yogish Bhat, who is also heading the petition committee of state legislatures.

Addressing a press conference after a meeting with top cops, elected representatives and district officials, Bhat said that the petition committee is preparing a report on issues like Naxal threats in Karnataka, enforcement of law to sniff out drugs and narcotics and the issue of fake currency notes, among others.

He added that although the integrated package aims at rehabilitating the tribal community which dwells in the forest areas where basic facilities are lacking, no forced eviction will be carried out. "Unless the Naxal threat is combated by the government by making prior preparations, the threat may grow to the extent of intense violence and destruction," he said.
 
"As Dakshina Kannada stands second highest in the use of drugs and narcotics after Bangalore, and due to the loopholes in the law pertaining to drug cases, hardly 5 percent of the offenders are convicted. Thus, in the meeting it was decided to enforce the law strictly," he said.
 
Yogish Bhat also said that the petition committee will visit the Lakya dam on June 28 to study the possibility of water supply to MCC, and to use the silt accumulated in the area as an alternative to sand, on which NITK has conducted a research, he said.
 
Issues like counterfeit currency racket and problems in the revenue department due to slow computers were also discussed in the meeting. "After gathering suggestions from various quarters, the report will be prepared by the committee and presented in the assembly session for the government to work out solutions on the issues," he said.
 
MLA Appachu Ranjan, B M Ashok, Lalaji R Mendon, Satyanarayana, DG Lalrokhuma Pachau, Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh, IGP Pratap Reddy, SP Abhishek Goyal, Zilla Panchayath CEO Dr Vijayprakash among others were present.