Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi (EP)
Udupi, Oct 20: District panchayat president Dinakar Babu has directed PDOs and taluk panchayat executives to take suitable measures to compulsorily ban use of plastic in all the gram panchayats limits in the district from November 1.
He was speaking after presiding over the monthly meeting held in district panchayat auditorium on Monday October 19.
“Though plastic is banned under Plastic Ban Act 2016, the Act is not implemented in rural areas. Shops and hotels are seen providing plastic bags to their customers. Though there are alternatives to plastic, those are not being used. Therefore, mandatory fines should be imposed in all the gram panchayat limits after November 1 for use of plastic. The awareness about it should be created from today itself,” he said.
He asked horticulture department officials to encourage terrace gardening by making use of the terrace garden on the horticulture department building roof as a model.
“The rain was above 15% normal in the district this year. While average rainfall is 4,375 millimetres, it was 5,051 millimetres this year. It has damaged 273 hectares of land. Necessary steps are taken to pay compensation,” said agriculture department joint director Kempegowda.
“Horticulture produce on 29 hectares is damaged. Compensation will be paid at the rate of Rs 20,000 per acre,” said horticulture department deputy director Bhuvaneshwari.
It was decided to write to the government to appoint officials as there is scarcity of officials in important government departments in the district.
Vice president Sheela Shetty objected to non-payment of salary to senior citizen’s helpline service staff for the last one year.
The president asked the taluk panchayat executive to make sure that the officials of gram panchayat attend gram panchayat offices regularly.
Social justice standing committee president Shobha G Putran, horticulture and industries standing committee president Pratap Hegde Marali, education and health standing committee president Sumith Shetty, district panchayat CEO Dr Navin Bhat, assistant secretary Kiran Fadnekar, project director Gurudath, Project, estimation and valuation officer Radhakrishna Adiga and different department officials were present.