District administration stops work on high-tension wire Srikanth Kallammanavar Lingapura, (Kodagu dist), Oct 20, 2013, DH News Service : The proposed project connects Mysore-Kozhikode Not in favour: Members of Kaveri Sene and villagers stage a protest against the work on the high-tension wire at Lingapura in Virajpet taluk, on Sunday. DH PHOTOS The Kodagu district administration has halted the work on high-tension wire, in the backdrop of High Court’s direction to the State government to review all those projects that come within Elephant Corridor, on Sunday. The 400-kv high-tension wire from Mysore-Kozhikode will be a part of Kudankulam nuclear power project. The officials were getting ready to take up the work at Lingapura on the border in Virajpet taluk, when the DC order reached them. Court order The High Court had filed suo motu case pertaining to rift between humanbeings-elephants way back in 2008. The court had given its verdict on October 8, after the verification. The verdict had directed the State government to conserve elephant corridor and review the work that will be taken up in and around the corridor. The Coorg Wildlife Society, Kaveri Sene and other like minded organisations which have been opposing the proposed high-tension wire brought the court direction to the notice of the district administration and alerted the administration that it would amount to contempt of court, if the work was initiated. The State government will have to take a decision after studying the pros and cons of the project. Opposition Coorg Wild Life Association President Col (retd) C P Muthanna said “felling of trees will amount to destruction of environment. The route can be changed or the already laid 210 kv line at Piriyapattana should be upgraded to 400-kv line. “If the authorities fail to change the route, then we will approach the court,” said Kaveri Sene convenor Ravi Changappa. In the backdrop of protest by various organisations, the authorities had beefed up security in and around the project site. What is the project? The proposed project is taken up by the Power Grid Corporation of India. Once the work on wheeling power from Kudankulam is complete, then Karnataka will get 520 MW and Kerala—260 MW. The 155 km work has been completed in Mysore, Ilavala in Karnataka and from Kozhikode to Kutta. The line will pass through 55 kms in Kodagu district, of which, 4.45 km is forest area and the rest is owned by private individuals. As many as 2,100 trees will have to be felled for the purpose. Comment by Devaiah Muccatira 22 hours ago Delete Comment ZP members demand probe into illegality in watershed schemes Madikeri, October 19, 2013, DHNS Reconstitute ZP standing committee for social justice Monthly general body meeting of Kodagu Zilla Panchayat at Fort hall on Saturday, witnessed a situation where a ZP member played the recorded voice in his mobile phone in the meeting hall, thus bringing out an alleged misappropriation in watershed department, to the fore. ZP member Bond Ganapathi alleged that misappropriation worth lakhs of rupees has taken place in implementing schemes under the watershed department and to support the same made the meeting participants to listen to the recorded statement. Voice in the phone recording revealed a daily wage labourer complaining that labourers who have dug pits under the watershed project, have not been paid labour charge of Rs 41 lakh. Producing documents, Ganapathi said that the officers were paying only half the wage to the labourers who dug the pit while the remaining amount goes to their pockets. A fixed deposit of Rs 81,500 was deposited in the bank in 2008, to take up the work under the watershed scheme. The amount has now reached Rs 3.85 lakh. But there are no records available on the same amount. The beneficiaries of western ghats development scheme have also been selected as the beneficiaries under special unit scheme. How has this happened? Why not the cheques issued to the daily wage labourers were not crossed? he asked. He also alleged that a total amount of Rs 1.62 lakh was collected from the farmers under the scheme, but there is only Rs 62,000 in the bank account. An investigation has to be carried out to trace the remaining amount, Ganapathi demanded. All the ZP member supported his views, and unanimously demanded for a probe into the issue and suspend the officer who has committed the offence. As they did not budge to the attempts of District Watershed Department Officer Thirumalesh to give clarifications, ZP President B Shivappa said that there seems to be misappropriation at the outset. The decision on suspending the officers involved in the scam should be taken up in a meeting of the agriculture standing committee, he ordered. Member Indiramma brought the issue of crores of rupees under 22.75 per cent the welfare of SC and ST communities, which remain unutilised, to the notice of the meeting. She demanded that the grant released has to be utilised during the same year, without keeping it pending. Several ZP members also demanded for reconstituting standing committee for social justice as the present committee members are not addressing the problems of the people. The members complained that there was no electricity connection for drinking water projects and contracts were given to ineligible contractors, for which ZP Assistant Executive Engineer Nayikoda replied that tenders were given to ineligible contractors based on the pressure from ZP members. The meeting also passed a resolution to hand over the inquiry of poor quality repair work of several primary health centres in the district, to vigilant squad. When member B B Bharathish demanded to tak action against those involved poor quality work, the ZP President said that the decision will be taken after discussing with the deputy commissioner. Bharathish also complained about the inordinate delay in probing the illegality in Akshara Dasoha.
Posted on: Mon, 21 Oct 2013 14:29:58 +0000
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