Mangaluru : Chief Executive Officer of the Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat Selvamani R. said on Monday that the panchayat has called a meeting of presidents and panchayat development officers (PDOs) of gram panchayats on September 20 to discuss the maintenance aspects of Reverse Osmosis (RO) plants (safe drinking water units) set up by the government in rural areas in the district.

The CEO said that even after calling for bids four times to maintain them, no one has responded.

If the gram panchayat presidents and PDOs agreed to maintain them, funds, which, otherwise, would had to be given to the contractor selected for maintaining them, would be given to the panchyats.

A decision on this would be taken after consulting them.

Some members said that 90 % of the units in the district had become defunct. The RO plants were not needed in Dakshina Kannada. They were really useful in parched districts and the districts which faced fluoride issues.

A member suggested that the units be shifted to such districts that really needed them.

Some Congress members alleged that the Rs. 10,000 immediate relief announced by the government for those whose houses have been damaged or lost in last month’s floods have not reached all.

M.S. Mohammed, Congress member, said that a resident in Karopady who had completely lost his house in heavy rain has not been given any immediate relief.

A Congress member and a former president of the zilla panchayat Mamata Gatti said that the government was not directly sanctioning Rs. 5 lakh to those who have lost their houses in the floods and heavy rain. She had learnt that the procedure of building houses under Ashraya scheme would be followed while building houses for flood victims. It would not help the victims in any way.

Instead, some arrangement should be made to sanction the amount directly to the victims to build houses. The amount can be given in instalments, she said.

K. Koragappa Naik, a BJP member and also a former president of the zilla panchayat, said that Dharmasthala-Mundaje Road and Shishila-Arasinamakki Road in Belthangady taluk has been damaged extensively in last month’s heavy rain.

The zilla panchayat should release special grants for repairing the zilla panchayat roads damaged in rain, he said.