Pics: Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru
Mangaluru, Jul 6: The government has provided adequate funds to tackle natural disasters, and there is no shortage of funds, said health minister U T Khader. He stated that the Dakshina Kannada deputy commissioner has already released Rs 44 lac each to every taluk in the district, amounting to a total of Rs 1.5 crore. If more funds are required, the government will provide them, he added.
Speaking after chairing the disaster management and drinking water progress review meeting held at the Dakshina Kannada deputy commissioner's office auditorium on Sunday, Khader said officials of the concerned departments must immediately visit areas affected by natural calamities and take necessary action. He said it was not appropriate for officials to merely get photographs taken by others without visiting the spot and then initiate the process for sanctioning funds.
Natural disasters are beyond human control. However, elected representatives, officials and the public must make every effort to respond to the hardships faced by those affected, said Karnataka health minister U T Khader.
He further said that rules framed at the state level may not suit every district, and therefore efforts should be made to find solutions to problems within the scope of the existing rules.
Khader advised officials not to treat problems like passing a football from one player to another. Instead, they should find solutions and ‘score the goal’ by resolving the issues.
Officials informed the meeting that pre-monsoon rainfall from March 1 to May 31 was 32 per cent below normal. Although the district has received good rainfall over the past seven days, it still remains below the seasonal average. From January 1 to July 4, the district received 785.7 mm of rainfall against the normal 1,338.07 mm.
The agriculture officer said the lack of rain in June had affected paddy transplantation. While agriculture in low-lying areas was favourable, irrigation was necessary in elevated regions. There was sufficient seed stock, and there was no shortage of fertilisers.
Khader instructed officials to immediately visit affected areas, conduct surveys and submit reports if paddy cultivation suffered damage due to rain or adverse weather conditions.
Horticulture officials informed the meeting that black pepper crops had been affected due to the lack of rainfall, while arecanut crops had not suffered any damage.
When minister Khader asked about the prevailing price of arecanut per kilogram, an official mistakenly quoted a much higher price and apologised. Reacting to this, Khader remarked, "If the price is really that high, everyone would start cultivating arecanut," cautioning the official.
Rain gauges not functioning properly: Khader drew attention to complaints that rain gauge stations were not functioning properly in several parts of the district. Additional deputy commissioner Raju K informed the meeting that there were 274 rain gauge stations in the district, of which 108 were functioning properly.
Sullia MLA Bhagirathi Murulya said inaccurate rainfall measurement was creating problems for agriculture. Legislative Council member Kishore Kumar also pointed out that faulty rainfall data had adversely affected farmers in the district, leading to disparities in crop insurance benefits provided by the government.
Deputy commissioner Darshan H V informed the meeting that 88 potential landslide-prone areas and 92 flood-prone areas had been identified in Dakshina Kannada district.
Regarding the retaining wall collapse at Naguri on July 1, he said an FIR had been registered, the technical report had been submitted to the government, and a case had been filed against the landowner.
MLC Ivan D'Souza raised concern that several people in Mangaluru city were residing in houses built on government-allotted sites in low-lying areas, while the land above these sites belonged to private owners. He questioned who would be held responsible if a landslide from the private land damaged the houses below.
Mangaluru South MLA Vedavyas Kamath said that merely allotting government sites was not enough, and urged the revenue department and the Mangaluru City Corporation to construct retaining walls for houses built on such sites.
Khader strongly criticised officials over problems at Pumpwell, Kottara, Nanthoor, near AJ Hospital, and Thokkottu Junction on the National Highway.
At this stage, NHAI officials stated that non-cooperation from certain departments had delayed the works. They said the removal of MESCOM electric poles at Nanthoor had been delayed and also alleged a lack of cooperation from the PWD.
MLC Ivan D'Souza added that an old building along the National Highway at Nanthoor had become vulnerable due to road-cutting works.
Khader instructed the concerned departments to work in coordination to resolve the issues. He questioned why PWD officials were remaining silent and directed NHAI and PWD officials to sit together and find solutions. He said elected representatives were facing criticism from the public because of the negligence of officials.
An official pointed out that the national highways department was facing a shortage of staff and that despite raising the issue at several meetings, the problem remained unresolved.
Khader responded by asking officials to submit a written note detailing their problems, adding that he would meet the union minister for road transport in New Delhi and take up the matter to resolve the issues.
Khader advised MESCOM not to assign personnel with drinking habits to attend to public grievances during night duty. He said such individuals often behaved inappropriately while interacting with members of the public and urged the department to exercise caution while assigning such responsibilities. He also asked MESCOM to provide information on whom the public should contact regarding electricity-related issues.
Officials informed the meeting that steps had been taken to release Rs 150 lac under NDRF and SDRF guidelines for the repair of 91 primary schools damaged by rain during 2026, and Rs 250 lac for the repair of 115 anganwadi centres.
Legislative Council member Dr Manjunath Bhandary pointed out that newspapers had reported about unsafe classrooms in several schools.
Khader directed education department officials to submit a report on the number of school buildings, classrooms and compound walls that were currently in a dangerous condition.
Sullia MLA Bhagirathi Murulya requested that doctors be appointed for night duty at the government hospital in Kukke Subrahmanya, considering the large number of devotees visiting the pilgrimage centre.
MLA Vedavyas Kamath suggested that the temple administration appoint doctors, pointing out that the temple generated substantial revenue. Khader instructed the health department to look into the matter.
The meeting was attended by District Panchayat Coastal Development Authority chairman M A Gaffoor, CEO Narwade Vinayak Karbari, police commissioner Sudheer Kumar Reddy C H, district SP Dr Arun, DCF Ravishankar, and MUDA chairman Sadashiva Ullal, among others.
Minister U T Khader distributed appreciation and gratitude certificates to those who extended assistance to the families of the victims who died in the retaining wall collapse near Naguri in the city on Wednesday.