The District Development Committee (DDC), which met here on Saturday, decided to take stern action against government staff who possess below the poverty line (BPL) ration cards. The meeting directed the district-level officers to submit a report to the Collector if any employee in their office had a BPL card, an official release said.
As per guidelines, government officers were not entitled to benefits given to BPL ration cardholders. The meeting also decided to initiate proceedings against ration shop owners who failed to deliver provisions to eligible beneficiaries, he said.
Officials concerned told the meeting that electrification work at the Vithura Jersey farm would be completed. Laying of boundary stone for the Vellayani Lake would be taken up after completing the survey to fix the border of the lake. The meeting also resolved to start construction of Naturopathy Centre at Varkala immediately, the release said. The executive engineer (buildings wing) of Public Works Department informed the DDC that the Kerala Highway Research Institute had commenced a viability study for a bypass linking Edava village office, panchayat office and high school at Varakala. A demand for constructing a bypass was made by Varkala Kahar, MLA. Work on removing piled up woods, bricks and pipes from the area had begun.
The DDC was told that estimate to reinvigorate the Gangayar Thodu would be prepared within two weeks. Immediate steps would be taken to provide compensation to those who had parted with land for the Vizhinjam International Container Terminal and distribute BPL cards to people with serious illness, the release said.
The meeting chaired by additional district magistrate V.R. Vinod. District panchayat vice-president Rufus Daniel, district planning officer N. Prasanna Kumari, representatives of T.N Seema, MP, K. Muraleedharan, MLA and V. Sashi, MLA, were present.
