Pics: Umesh Marpalli
Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (HB)

Udupi, Oct 28: "All construction works should be completed before the end of December this year," instructed district in-charge minister Pramod Madhwaraj to all departmental engineers on Thursday, October 27 at the Karnataka Development Programme meeting.

The meeting was held at V S Acharya auditorium hall, zilla panchayat, Rajatadri Manipal.

Karkala MLA raised the issue of cutting trees that impede widening of Karkala road. Perceiving a miscommunication between MESCOM, NHAI, Forest department and PWD department Minister Pramod said, "There is a lack of coordination between different departments. Deputy commissioner Priyanka must conduct a meeting for all department’ engineers to resolve the miscommunication within a week." 

BPL ration cards

Kundapur MLA Gopal Poojary raised the issue about people not getting cards new BPL cards even after 2-4 months of applying. The Tahsildar said, "No ration cards were printed from one month. BPL card tokens are generated for 3800 cards. But the cards have not come from Bangaluru food department. Distribution is pending for 1169 ration cards in Kota, and 4353 in Udupi. The third check-list is yet to be printed."

Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grama Jyothi Yojana

Minister Pramod instructed MESCOM officials to provide electricity to those with BPL cards, even without the RR number. "The electricity connection work should be completed by March. Do not slow the work down," he said.

Addressing the shortage of sand, the minister decided to send a resolution to the government about sand extraction in the non-CRZ area. "The concerned department should allow sand extraction at the in-stream area if there is water in the vented dam."

Multi-village water supply project

Byndoor MLA K Gopala Poojary said, "The irrigation department has failed to implement the multi-village water supply project in Byndoor in the last four years and six months. It is a Rs 5-crore worth project."

MLA Sunil raising the same issue said, "The department completed the first phase of MVWSP between Hebri and Nitte. But it remained unused. A tender of three months has been called, but the department has not decided on an agent to start the second phase of the water project."

Minister Pramod directed the officials to hand over unutilized buildings to the gram panchayat for the Swacch Udupi work.

KSRTC – JNNURM buses

MLA Gopal Poojary said, " As many as 130 new buses and ten minibuses are ready to get on the road here and in Shivamogga. Once the RTO provides the permission, buses will be available for public use."

ARTO said, "We have been cancelled permission given to 56 private buses."

Minister Pramod addressing the lobby of private buses said, "It has come to my notice that RTO officials have joined with private bus owners. Many private buses violate the rules, but no complaints have been filed so far. Why can they not file the complaints? The RTO has all the rights to take action against owners that run buses without a permit. The poor performance of government transport officials is also a reason for the delay in the process of getting permission."

Road accidents on national highways

SP Sanjiv Patil informed, "Unscientific road planning has led to many accidents on the highways. As many as 3194 accident cases have been filed in seven years from 2011 to 2017. Around 719 have died, 851 were injured. The NHAI will not consider the police department while constructing highway work."

Six Ambedkar Bhavans have been sanctioned for Udupi, but there is no site available at the constituency," said minister Madwaraj.

MLC Halady Srinivas Shetty, MLC Pratapchandra Shetty, ZP president Dinakar Babu, vice president Sheela K Shetty, assistant commissioner Shilpa Nag, and CEO Shivanand Kapashi were present at the KDP meeting.