Nirmal Gram tag for all 203 Gram Panchayats in District

Inspection team rejects applications of Mangalore, Sullia taluks

District Chief Planning Officer T J Takat Rao informed this to the district vigilance and monitoring committee meeting chaired by MP Nalin Kumar Kateel at Zilla Panchayat here on Wednesday.

Nirmal Gram tag for all GPs in the district will make way for a district-level award in the coming year, he said. A total of 49 villages received the award in 2007-08 while 131 villages received the award in 2008-09.

Belthangady, Puttur and Bantwal taluks have already received the taluk-level awards. Mangalore and Sullia had applied for the awards but the inspection team found plastic in Konaje (Mangalore) and in Kalmadka (Sullia) and hence the applications were rejected, he informed.

Officials warned

In the backdrop of complaints from the representatives of Taluk Panchayats regarding the delay in the implementation of projects under various Centrally sponsored schemes, the MP asked the officials to come with proper information or face disciplinary actions.

The Executive Engineer of the Panchayat Raj Engineering Department had stated in the review meeting held on December 20, 2008 that two road projects in Edapadav in Bantwal taluk would be completed within February 2009. However, works have not been done till date.

When the MP enquired the official on the lapse, he said that the project has been completed just three days back. When the MP himself said that the project has not been started yet, the official had to keep quiet.

In contrast to the statement by the Mangalore Taluk Panchayat Executive Officer that a total of five posts of GP secretaries are vacant in the taluk, a Zilla Panchayat official said that only three such posts are vacant in the entire district, which created confusion in the meeting. Kateel asked the officials to submit a clear report.

A GP representative complained that not a single house has been sanctioned to Ulaibettu village in the past four years, in response to which the officials stated that nine houses have been sanctioned to the village in 2009-10.

MGREGS progress

The officials informed that a total of 18,480 job cards have been distributed to beneficiaries in Puttur taluk under the MGREGS, while 9,424 cards have been distributed in Sullia taluk, 12,254 cards in Puttur, 10,003 cards in Mangalre, 21,276 in Belthangady. Works of Rs 2.47 crore have been completed in Bantwal, and of Rs 2.60 crore in Belthangady, they added.

Kateel said the district was lagging in the implementation of the scheme six months ago, and now the progress is considerable. The district should top the list, he stressed. The implementation of Indira Awaz scheme is on a slow pace and hence the works should be accelerated, he noted.

As per the statistics, a total of 456 houses have been sanctioned to Bantwal, in which the works of 34 houses are yet to begin. Belthangady has got 388 houses out of which only 43 have been completed. Mangalore has got 312 houses, of which the works of 45 houses are yet to begin. The works of 176 houses in Puttur are in different stages. Of the 243 houses sanctioned to Sullia taluk, 54 are yet to start. PMGSY officials said proposal has been submitted for 36 roads (287.26 km) in different parts of the district for the year 2009-10, which are yet to be approved.

ZP President Santhosh Kumar Bhandary, Vice President Jagannath Salian and Project Director N C Seethamma were present.