Don’t be apathetic towards drought work, officials warned

Reviewing drought-relief measures here on Friday, District in-charge Secretary for Dharwad P. Manivannan issued a warning to officials that none would be spared if it was found that they had been apathetic towards problems pertaining to drinking water, fodder for cattle and creation of jobs under MNREGA. Chairing a review meeting, Mr. Panivannan also asked the officials to set up a group using the app Telegram to mitigate the sufferings of the people. Mr. Manivannan also urged people to join the group (helpline number 99011 00000) not only to air their grievances but also to suggest solutions to the problems. Referring to the complaints pertaining to quality of the water supplied, he urged for a third-party inspection. Taking District Health and Family Welfare Officer Rajendra Doddamani to task for his reported failure to take adequate measures to contain the spread of water-borne diseases, Mr. Manivannan directed him to take steps to spread awareness through the distribution of pamphlets on dos and don’ts during summer. Although the officials of Department of Animal Husbandry claimed that there adequate stock of fodder in the district, Deputy Commissioner of Dharwad S.B. Bommanahalli admitted that most complaints pertained to the availability of fodder.

However, Mr. Bommanahalli clarified that fodder from Ballari, Vijayapura and Bagalkot districts was being purchased and kept in 16 fodder banks spread across the district. Some places had been identified for setting up goshalas, he said.