118 more services come under Citizen Charter in Karnataka

 Enthused by the success of "Sakala", the citizen charter scheme, Karnataka Government today decided to add 118 more services under 14 departments under the scheme with effect from October one.

With this, the total number of services brought under Sakala scales upto 265, Minister for Urban Development S Suresh Kumar told reporters after a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar.

The government has already brought 151 services from eleven departments under the citizen charter programme to ensure delivery of service in a stipulated time limit.
Kumar said in the wake of no seekers of services, four services in Home and Women and Children Department has been withdrawn from Sakala.

It has been decided to make mandatory filing of on-line applications under Sakala scheme from March 31, 2013, he said.

Kumar said the meeting decided to authorise the Chief Minister to recommend names of those persons who have rendered yeoman services in various fields to the Centre for the Padma awards.

The cabinet decided to enhance grant-in-aid for employees working in 43 private polytechnic institutions from the existing 85 per cent grants to 100 per cent.

Consequent to the hike in grants for salaries, the 15 per cent seats that the managements controlled hitherto, will come under government quota, he said.
Approval has been accorded for the long pending eight lane corridor with two Railway underbridge construction to decongest traffic on Rajajinagar-Majestic junction, at a total cost of Rs 115 crore, Kumar said.

Hanjeer Biotech Engineering Private Ltd., a Gujarat based firm would be establishing a garbage processing unit on the city outskirts in Tavarekere hobli and the government will be allotting ten acres on lease for 20 years.

The firm has processing units in 20 locations across the country including one in Salem and process 750 Mt of garabage in the city in the first phase.

Three more firms will also be awarded garbage processing contracts, Kumar said.
The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike recently encountered a major problem in garbage disposal with villages with existing dumpyard resenting dumping of the garbage.

Bangalore city produces 4,000 mt tons of garbage daily. The government, continuing its efforts check naxal menace, decided to extend Rs five crore grant to each of the nine naxal infested taluks in five districts for development works.

Five more wards in Hubli city will be brought under 24 x 7 water supply scheme, a facility enjoyed by eight wards already, Kumar said. Hubli city is the home town of Shettar.

The cabinet also accorded administrative approval for garbage disposal project in Hubli-Dharwad city under Design- Finance-Build-Operate and Transfer basis to a private firm.

The government decided to extend the deadline for payment of water cess arrears from people in Hubli-Dharwad, Mangalore and Mysore till December 2012.

Kumar said the cabinet endorsed the decision of the all party floor leaders meeting on Cauvery to file a review petition before the Cauvery River Authority on its directive to Karnataka to release 9,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu daily.