Shortage of sand across dist echoes in housing adalat

Shortage of sand across Dakshina Kannada district echoed in the Mangaluru taluk-level Vasathi (housing) adalat here on Thursday.

Gram panchayat representatives at the adalat highlighted the issue of non availability of sand affecting the completion of houses under various housing schemes in the taluk.

Chairing the meeting, Taluk Panchayat president Mohammed Monu said that the district administration has initiated measures to solve the row over the shortage of sand in the district. The officials should prioritise completing houses under housing schemes in the taluk.

Stating that the government has implemented the ambitious Basava Vasathi yojane, Mohammed Monu said that the gram panchayat PDOs should give priority to provide a roof to the beneficiaries.

District Project Officer Lokesh said that the target for the district during the year was to construct 8,300 houses of which, 3,000 have been completed. Over 5,000 houses are in various stages of completion. The target for Mangaluru taluk is 1,283 houses, of which 480 have been completed and 803 are in various phases of completion. All the houses would be completed by January, he said.

He said that Vasathi adalat is being organised in five taluks in the district following the direction of the ZP CEO. The adalat is being organised to accelerate housing works. The adalat has already been completed in Bantwal and Belthangady and will be held at Puttur and Sullia taluks on Monday.

A Taluk panchayat member said that many a time houses remain incomplete owing to shortage of funds.

A Gram panchayat PDO said that, "Appi Puthra, a beneficiary in Beluvai gram panchayat had applied under the housing scheme in 2016. Though funds have been sanctioned, the authorities concerned have not given approvals for the construction work. As a result, he could not take up the work on house construction for the last one and a half years. I have written more than 20 correspondences in this regard."

Taluk Panchayat vice president Poornima Ganesh, ZP members Sucharitha Shetty, Janardhan Gowda were present.