Udupi : R. Vishal, took charge as the Deputy Commissioner of Udupi district here on Wednesday Nov 5, Outgoing DC S.S. Pattana Shetty handed over charge to Dr Vishal.

Dr. Vishal hails from Hubballi. He got 14th rank in CSE in 2004 Karnataka batch. He had completed his MBBS from Karantaka Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS), Hubballi. He has served in many positions including Deputy Commissioner of Chikkabalapur and Kalaburagi districts and Additional Election Commissioner of Bangaluru Municipal Corporation.

Speaking to media , Dr. Vishal said he would give priority to the issues of providing title deeds to the poor and ensuring the rights of tribal communities in forests. Revenue Adalats were being held in different parts of the district. This would help in identifying and providing lands to poor people. The poor people were being given two to two-and-a-half cents of land to construct houses.

An amount of Rs. nine crore had been released to the district, two years ago, to take up development of naxalite-affected villages. Already, an amount of Rs. 5.63 crore from this package had been spent for various projects like constructing roads and community halls. The remaining amount too would be utilized effectively.

As far as sand mining activity and operation of stone crushers were concerned, the district was following directions of the government. “We want to ensure the protection of environment also promote development. We want an even balance between the two,” he said.

The Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in the district had had also received funds under the Nagarothana and Second Finance Commission. “We will take effective steps to implement various projects,” he said.

To a query, Dr. Vishal said he would check if the building laws were being followed in Udupi city and also the implementation of Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) norms.