The government will conduct a re-survey of persons with disabilities in the State to record their exact number for providing benefits to them, said Minister for Backward Classes Welfare and Muzarai Kota Srinivas Poojary here on Monday.
Speaking at a function organised by the Urban Poverty Alleviation Cell of Mangaluru City Corporation to distribute various facilities, Mr. Poojary, who is also Minister in charge of Dakshina Kannada, said changes will made in the norms for assessing the disability.
Appreciating the work of Mayor Diwakar and other councillors in allotting houses to pourakarmikas, handing over wheelchairs and other benefits to beneficiaries under the urban poverty alleviation fund of the MCC, Mr. Poojary said the State government is committed to identify people without houses and without power and provide them facilities.
D. Vedavyas Kamath, Mangaluru City South MLA, said that construction of 930 flats to the houseless on 10 acres in Shakti Nagar has not commenced despite issuance of title deeds to the beneficiaries in 2018. The concerned land was a deemed forest and the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests is yet to give clearance for using the same land for housing purpose. Steps are being taken by the State government to give an alternative 20 acres to the Forest Department for compensatory afforestation and seek allocation of the land in Shakti Nagar for building a multi-storey apartment complex. “We have to seek pardon of the beneficiaries for the delay in the construction,” he said.
Mr. Kamath said process of identification of beneficiaries will start shortly for the proposed 1,500 houses to be constructed by the Karnataka Slum Development Board in Kannur. Errors in the title deeds issued to the houseless in Bengre were being rectified, he said.
Earlier, 16 current and retired pourakarmikas received keys of their houses in newly constructed three-floor residential apartment complex in Mahakalipadpu. There are 32 apartments in this complex. Benefits namely allotment of wheelchairs, cooking gas connection, lavatory construction, and reimbursement of healthcare expenses were given away to a total of 759 beneficiaries on Monday.
Mayor Diwakar and Mangaluru City North MLA Y. Bharath Shetty also spoke.
