Citing the Calamity Relief Fund guidelines, Deputy Commissioner D. Randeep has instructed officials to obtain prior permission from him or tahsildars before hiring water tankers to provide water to villages across Mysuru district.
He cautioned officials that the bills generated without obtaining prior permission will not be approved. Scores of bills had been submitted to the district administration last summer and officials had a tough time in getting them approved by the Deputy Commissioner.
Talking to The Hindu on Thursday, Mr. Randeep said water could be provided through tankers for 90 days and if required for a longer period, revalidation had to be obtained. With drinking water scarcity in many villages much before the summer this year, tankers may have to be hired for more than 90 days.
Mr. Randeep said approval for hiring water tankers would be given on top priority soon after a request was received from taluk level officials. Hence, he asked officials to submit the proposals once they were convinced that drinking water was to be provided to villages where borewells and other water sources were rendered useless.
He also made it clear that works such as repair of borewells and pipelines could be undertaken under the Calamity Relief Fund. The district administration would fix the tariff for water tankers in a day or two.
