Mangaluru : The Congress leaders have not made sincere efforts to get funds from the government for storing water at Thumbe Vented Dam up to the maximum level of seven metres said, D. Vedavyasa Kamath, MLA, Mangaluru City South, on Monday

Funds are required for paying compensation to those whose land will be submerged when water is stored up to seven metres, he said.

Addressing presspersons, Mr. Kamath said that the Congress was leading the State government a year ago. Now, it is the turn of the coalition government in the State.

The council of Mangaluru City Corporation, whose term ended last month, was led by the Congress. “Did you make any sincere effort to get ₹ 115 crore-₹ 120 crore from the government to pay compensation to land losers? I don’t see any,” the MLA said.

Mr. Kamath said that if water were stored up to seven metres, there was no need for rationing now. Hence, he was holding the Congress responsible for it.

Reminding the Congress leaders that he had personally approached Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy twice in this regard, he said that he had first given a letter seeking funds to acquire land that would be submerged if water was stored up to seven metres immediately after he was elected MLA. “I also appealed to him personally to allocate ₹ 120 crore for land acquisition prior to the State Budget as the city corporation does not have such funds,” he said.

Mr. Kamath said that the first phase water supply and underground drainage network projects taken up in the city with loan from Asian Development Bank had seen many lapses. They should not be repeated while taking up the second stage projects also under ADB loan and from the Union government funds under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) Scheme. Hence, the government should appoint a third party to inspect the projects to be taken up.

He said that the Union government has sanctioned ₹ 35.51 crore under AMRUT Scheme for the city. In addition, the process of taking up second stage water supply projects with a loan of ₹ 461 crore from ADB has begun. The quality of the projects to be taken up under both these funds should be monitored by a third party.