Udupi : Jayamala Women and Child Development Minister said on Friday that water was being provided with the help of 141 tankers in 121 villages coming under 84 gram panchayats in Udupi district.

Addressing presspersons after chairing a meeting on drinking water and related problems here, Ms. Jayamala said that the State government declared Karkala and Kundapur in the district as drought-affected taluks some months ago.

Silt was being removed from open wells to rejuvenate them. There was no shortage of fodder for cattle in the district. It had been decided to remove illegal water pumpsets from river banks. Water was even being supplied through private borewells to water-scarce areas. The district administration had ₹ 33 crore, including the funds under National Disaster Response Fund and State Disaster Response Fund, with it. Of the ₹ 6 crore from the State Disaster Response Fund, ₹ 3 crore had been spent on providing water through tankers and other related works, she said.

It had also been decided to include removal of silt from water bodies under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme. Silt would be removed from 400 ponds in the district and they would be rejuvenated. Silt would be removed from dams in the district. The implementation of the Multi-Village Scheme for drinking water would be expedited, she said.

The water level in the Baje dam across the Swarna had declined and this had affected supply of drinking water in Udupi city. Operations were on to remove silt and big boulders from the Swarna. The water in the Swarna was enough to meet the needs of the city for about 20 days.

She had visited the Baje dam and other surrounding areas and inspected the work to remove silt being taken up there. The district administration and the Udupi City Municipal Council were working to resolve the drinking water problem, she said.