The State Government is all set to declare 1,000 villages 'open defecation free' on January 26, said Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister, H.K. Patil on Friday.
Speaking to presspersons after chairing a review meeting of RDPR programmes taken up in the last nine months, the Minister said of the targeted 10 lakh toilets that the department had proposed to build in villages, more than five lakh had been completed. "All the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) and deputy secretaries of Zilla Panchayats have been directed to achieve the target of building 10 lakh toilets," he said.
Social audit
The Minister said the department will get a social audit done by January 25 in the 1,000 villages that are ready to be declared open defecation free on January 26.
Meeting with Union Minister
Mr. Patil said he will meet the Union RDPR Minister on Janaury 3rd or 4th to persuade him not to slash the fund allocated for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) scheme to Karnataka during the year 2014–15. The Union Government has decided to cut Rs 1,200 crore this fund.
He said he will also raise the issue in the RDPR Ministers meeting scheduled to be held in Trivandrum on January 6.
Terming it as a "step-motherly" attitude towards Karnataka, the Minister said the decision would hit the scheme that is mainly aimed at providing employment to unemployed youth and developing rural areas.
"I appeal to the Union Government to retain our original allocation and release funds at the earliest. Andhra Pradesh has got its allocation in one go whereas we have been getting in instalments," he said.
