Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (SP)
Udupi, Aug 12: Home and district-in-charge minister, Basavaraj Bommai, exhorted the government officials to use their will power, accept the challenges posed by natural calamity, floods, and COVID-19 regulations with positive attitude, and work efficiently.
He was speaking after chairing a meeting he held with the officials at the auditorium of the zilla panchayat at Rajatadri on Tuesday August 11.
He advised the officials to form teams at gram panchayat level with the coming together of officials and local volunteers who can be trained, to undertake flood relief measures. For this, he said disaster management plans can be drawn at the village level and undertake relief measures accordingly. He also sought daily reports and asked the taluk panchayat executive officers and deputy secretaries at the district level to oversee the functioning of such committees.
He noted that there has been volatility in the quantum of rainfall and velocity of wind and hence advised the officials to take note of these factors, which can cause large scale disasters. He advised village accountants, panchayat development officers, and officials of the agriculture and horticulture departments to undertake joint survey in case of loss to agricultural and horticultural crops by employing modern technology. He said that they have to consider the erosion of sand also when assessing losses so that the farmers get compensation as per national disaster relief fund guidelines. He advised them to send estimates for the sea erosion in the district and sought panchayat raj, engineering and local bodies to provide estimated cost to undertake relief works in order to enable him to make efforts for the release of grants.
He also said that rehabilitation centres can be built in the taluk at an expenditure of Rs five crore. He asked officials to design these centres in such a way that they can be used for other purpose after the flood abates.
About COVID-19, he suggested increasing the testing and adding to the current strength of ventilator beds.
MLA Raghupati Bhat, sought release of compensation in case of rain damage. Karkala MLA Sunil Kumar, also spoke. Byndoor MLA Sukumar Shetty, chairman of Coastal Development Authority Mattar Ratnakar Hegde, zilla panchayat president Dinakar Babu, vice president Sheela Shetty, deputy commissioner G Jagadeesha, chief executive officer Preeti Gehlot, superintendent of police Vishnuvardhan, additional deputy commissioner Sadashiva Prabhu and others were present.