Dakshina Kannada 'deemed forest' row to be solved

The Karnataka government led by Chief Minister Basavaaj Bommai is committed to solve the row over the 'deemed forest' in the state, said District-in-Charge Minister V Sunil Kumar.

The government will drop 34,000 hectares of land from 'deemed forest classification' in Dakshina Kannada. There are 66428 hectares of deemed forest in the district, he said after unfurling the National Flag to mark Republic Day celebrations at Nehru Maidan in Mangaluru. Owing to the deemed forest classification, basic amenities could not be developed and even title deeds could not be issued to the farmers who have been cultivating on the land for the last several decades.

He said that activities like Naxalism, terrorism attempted to weaken the Constitution. However, such extremist activities could be overcome through the Constitution which India has. There is a need to strengthen the Constitution through our activities. "A teacher's son could become District-in-Charge Minister of Dakshina Kannada only because of the Constitution which was adopted in the country," said the minister.

Stating that efforts will be made to develop Dakshina Kannada into agriculture, tourism, entrepreneur and culture friendly district, the minister said efforts will be made to expand the area under farming. About 1.54 lakh farmers in the district have received income support under Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana. As many as 1600 farmer's children in the district have received scholarships from the government.

Jal Jeevan Mission aims at supplying tapped water to 3.28 lakh households in Dakshina Kannada. As many as 458 works worth Rs 149 crore were taken up last year and 126 works worth Rs 198 crore were implemented in the district during the year. The district has a target to provide houses to 8000 shelterless in the district through various housing schemes. About 13 acres of land have been identified in Konaje for the housing projects, he added.

Further, the Minister said that efforts are being made to develop Tannirbavi beach in the city to get Blue Flag certification. About 873-km long interior roads were upgraded as district roads and 237-km long district roads were upgraded as state roads in the district.

To promote industries, the KIADB has been directed to identify land in all the taluks in the district, he said, and added that under the Belaku scheme 2500 houses had been provided with electricity in the district. To improve the quality of supply of electricity seven 110 kv sub stations will be developed in Dakshina Kannada in addition to five 33 kv sub stations.

A total of 97% of the population in the district have received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine and 81% have received the second dose. There is no scarcity of oxygen in the district.

Under the Amrith scheme, 25 primary health centres will be upgraded in the district. Eight lakh people have benefitted under Ayushman Bharat scheme, he added.

Farmer Mahalinga Naik who has been selected for Padma Shri award was felicitated on the occasion.