The Hindu : Karnataka / Mangalore News : NGO Task Force seeks formation of MLAs' group

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jun 08, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka - Mangalore

NGO Task Force seeks formation of MLAs' group

By Our Staff Correspondent

MANGALORE, JUNE 7. The NGO (non-governmental organisation) Task Force here has suggested that a group comprising the MLAs from Dakshina Kannada be formed to protect the interests of the district in the implementation of development programmes and projects.

In a press release, Harsha D'Souza, convener of the task force, said conversion of the Hassan-Mangalore railway line into a broadgauge route was estimated at Rs. 200 crore. But the Government had not raised the money.

He termed the proposal to divert the Nethravati unscientific, and said the inflow into the river was decreasing. The proposed linking of rivers was also unscientific, and this project, if implemented, would have disastrous ecological consequences.

He said intrusion of seawater was posing a problem, and this was one of the main reasons that made the corporation build a vented dam at Thumbay. Most houses in the city were supplied saltwater during the previous summer. The problem would be aggravated were the Nethravati was diverted.

He said the inflow into the river fell from November every season. By January, the flow was reduced to a trickle. There was no inflow from the Western Ghats region. Mangalore Refineries Private Ltd. had constructed a vented dam upstream of Thumbay and used the storage in its plant. Only the residual water downstream was supplied to the people. There was now a proposal to construct another vented dam at Uppinangady to supply water to Puttur and surrounding towns. Also, it had been planned to double the number of tap connections in the city.

Mr. D'Souza said the corporation's vented dam at Thumbay had developed cracks at several places.

Steps should be taken to plug them. Construction of another dam would be futile.

He said although Rs. 105 crore of the Rs. 306-crore loan from the Asian Development Bank to improve civic amenities had been spent, people in the city were yet to benefit from the projects completed. Local officials familiar with needs of the city should be appointed to handle the works being taken up using the loan.

He said the elected representatives were silent on move by the Government to "impose" the self-assessment scheme for property tax in the city.

Noting that politicians in the district had got implemented several projects of importance, he said only a "lobby'' of elected representatives could achieve this task now.

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