Bhatkal: Forest officials detain workers at illegal construction site; Labourer association jumps in to rescue

Bhatkal 27 November 2018: (Bhatkallys News Bureau) Bhatkal Taluka Labor Association on Monday staged a protested against the forest officials outside their office after the forest officials allegedly arrested two laborers while working as a daily-wage laborers at a building on forest land here at Kokti Nagar of Bhatkal on Monday. Madev Mastappa Naik and Kamal Basha were plastering a house that was being built on forest land. Upon noticing the illegal construction, the forest officials detained both of them. As the news spread into the local circles, members of labor association reached the forest department office and started protesting. However, amidst protest officials from both the parties were involved in a fruitful dialogue at the forest office which later saw both the detained being released with a formal warning. "Laborers cannot individually verify if the land they are working is a private property or property of any of the government department and authority, for them, it is their job which will feed their family. So they take up job, already daily laborers have scarcity of jobs with no sand supply in the Taluka, so it is not their fault" Shridhar Naik president of laborers association told media after the duo were released. However RFO Shankar Gowda, played down the allegations of detaining the laborers and added that it was just a formal enquiry and the department wanted to know who had hired them for the job. During the protest, several members of association including, Krishna Naik Honnigadde, Ramesh Naik, Krishna Naik and others were present at the forest office. (Bhatkallys News Bureau/Rizwan Gangavali)