Gubbi residents air a litany of woes

Gubbi: “There is no ambulance available, sites are not being allotted, Gruha Lakshmi payments are not reaching beneficiaries, e-Khata documents are not being issued, and drinking water is not being supplied…”These were just some of the grievances raised at the public meeting held as part of the ‘Prajaseva’ campaign organised by the taluk administration at the Gubbi Veeranna Rangamandira here on Saturday. Hundreds of people brought a series of problems to the attention of Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara.“Officials concerned should not delay the disposal of applications. If people are forced to approach us repeatedly with the same problem, action will be taken against the officials,” the DCM warned.Hundreds of people headed towards Gubbi from the morning after learning that the deputy chief minister was holding a meeting at the taluk headquarters. Braving the heat, they stood in queues in front of the auditorium to register their grievances online. They then stood in another queue to personally bring their problems to Parameshwara’s attention.Gruha LakshmiRs 2.14 cr recovered from 9,156 Gruha Lakshmi accounts: NaikThe meeting was organised in a very cramped space, leaving people struggling to submit their applications. After 1 pm, police stopped those arriving at the venue at the gate itself. This led to a heated exchange between the police and members of the public.Twelve registration counters had been opened. Pregnant women and elderly people had also arrived with their grievances. Women stood in queues carrying young children in their arms. “The applications we submit end up in the dustbin. We have submitted them many times already,” said Bhagya Jyothi of Gubbi town, expressing her frustration while standing among the crowd.Bengaluru: GBA shifts e-khata correction work to deputy commissioners“An e-Khata was issued illegally at Kallur Gram Panchayat, but it is not being cancelled. The officials are asking me to approach the High Court. Can I afford to pay a High Court lawyer?” asked Parappa of Kallur.Parameshwara assured him that instructions will be issued to cancel the e-Khata.“An ambulance has not been provided to Kadaba hospital. People in this area face severe difficulties during emergencies. Despite submitting applications for several years, no action has been taken,” said Chandan, a youth from the village.“Workers are not being paid the minimum wage. We are currently being paid Rs 13,000, which is not enough to run a family. The minimum wage should be implemented,” demanded Madhu and few other workers who work at Nandini cattle-feed unit.Opposition to canalHemavathi Express Link Canal Opposed Action Committee submitted a memorandum to G Parameshwara urging that permission should not be granted for the Hemavathi Express Link Canal project.“If water is transported through a pipeline, seven to eight taluks in the district will face a serious threat,” they said. Farmer leaders staged a protest in front of the auditorium, alleging that the police are not allowing them to submit their memorandum.’Did you pass engineering through malpractice?’KSRTC Chairman and MLA S R Srinivas expressed dissatisfaction over the poor quality of road works. “None of the road works are being executed properly. I do not know whether the engineers studied and obtained their BE degrees or passed by copying” he remarked. “I am in the constituency every day yet problems are not being resolved here. One can only imagine the condition of constituencies where MLAs visit their people once every four or five months” he said. The MLA also requested that the land earmarked for Gubbi town stadium be transferred in the name of the Sports Department and that Rs five crore to Rs 10 crore be sanctioned for its development.‘Fodder available for 30 weeks’Parameshwara said the state is facing a severe drought this year and that conditions similar to those prevailing around 150 years ago has emerged. “Ten taluks in the district have been declared drought-hit. At present there is enough fodder to last for about 30 weeks” he said. He added that Rs one crore has been provided to each constituency for drinking-water supply and that employment has been provided to people under the VB-G Ram G scheme. BMTC vice-president Nikethraj Maurya Guarantee Implementation Committee chairpersons G Chandrashekar Gowda and K R Venkatesh district in-charge secretary Deepa Cholan Deputy Commissioner Shubha Kalyan Zilla Panchayat CEO B V Ashwija Superintendent of Police K V Ashok and Assistant Commissioner Nahida Zam Zam were present.

Source: Deccan Herald