173 villages may face water scarcity: Chamarajanagar DC

District in-charge Secretary takes stock of drought condition

District In-charge Secretary Shambhu Dayal Meena, on Friday, directed the officials to be proactive and tour villages under their purview to assess the extent of problems faced by the people and to find out adequate solutions.

He was addressing a meeting of district-level officials at the Zilla Panchayat office after inspecting farmlands affected due to drought in the district.

“Jobs should be provided for all people seeking work under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS). All officials should behave responsibly in discharging their duties,” he said.

“One cannot understand the problems of the people if one is confined to the office. While the district-level officials should supervise the overall relief measures, Taluk Panchayat executive officers, Grama Panchayat development officers and secretaries should report to their respective higher officials about the measures taken,” Meena said.

Pointing out that officials are not attending Grama Sabhas and taluk-level meetings to discuss the problems of the people, he said, the district-level officials should keep him informed about the absentees.

Deputy Commissioner A M Kunjappa said that as the monsoon had failed, at least 173 villages would face water scarcity.

“Steps should be taken to avoid migration of the people from villages in search of employment,” he added.

Daily updates sought
Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer K H Narasimhamurthy sought daily updates from the officials concerned on the progress of relief measures.

Earlier, Meena, along with other officials, visited Lakkuru, Depapura and Sheelavanthapura in Gundlupet taluk and interacted with farmers. He also visited Devalapura and Veeranapura in Chamarajanagar taluk and Mangala in Kollegal taluk.

Forward proposals
Speaking about the development of the district, Meena said, the officials should forward comprehensive proposals for the development of Malemahdeshwara Hill and surrounding villages like Medagane, Kokkebare, Tulasikere and Padasalanatha.

Additional Deputy Commissioner D Bharathi, Assistant Commissioner Kavitha Rajaram, ZP Deputy Secretary Munirajappa, Chief Planning Officer C H Vasundharadevi, Joint Director for Agriculture M Thirumallesh, Veterinary department Deputy Director Dr Ramachandra and Executive Engineer Devaraju were present.