Mangaluru (PTI): The Dakshina Kannada district administration has got down to work ahead of the monsoon season (June to August) by beginning preparations to tackle various rain-related issues.
At a meeting held on Tuesday, the district authorities, Deputy Commissioner Mullai Muhilan MP reached out to the ground-level bureaucracy with directions on how to handle the challenges during the monsoon season.
Addressing the drinking water and disaster management authority officials, he highlighted the problems faced due to poor maintenance of the electrical system under Mangaluru Electric Supply Company (MESCOM) and said it was not just failure of power supply during rains but also snapping of live cables and falling electric poles which were a concern.
Since this would cause serious damage to life and property, he urged MESCOM to take precautions by carrying out inspections.
Muhilan also directed MESCOM to deploy additional men and open more control rooms across the district during the monsoon season and said both urban and rural areas must be given equal importance.
Muhilan said in the run-up to the monsoons, the existing domestic water availability should be managed prudently.
At the meeting, emphasis was laid on cleaning of dumping yards and garbage disposal areas before the monsoon.
The health department was asked to take precautionary measures against the spread of infectious diseases such as dengue and malaria during the rainy season.
He said that the National Highway should list areas where landslides occur in Charmadi Ghat areas and information should be made available to people about traffic related issues in ghat areas.
The district Deputy Commissioner instructed the Fisheries Department to hold a meeting on precautionary measures for fishermen during the rainy season.
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Sambhal (UP) (PTI): Police used tear gas and "minor force" in the face of stone pelting by locals here on Sunday as tension escalated during a second survey of the Mughal-era mosque, claimed to be originally the site of an ancient Hindu temple.
Tension has been seething in Sambhal over the past few days after the Jama Masjid was surveyed last Tuesday on the orders of a local court following a petition that claimed that a Harihar temple stood at the site.
According to the local administration, a second survey by an "Advocate Commissioner" as part of a court-ordered examination into the disputed site began around 7 am and a crowd began gathering at the spot.
"Some miscreants came out of the crowd gathered near the site and pelted stones at the police team. The police used minor force and tear gas to bring the situation under control," Superintendent of Police Krishna Kumar Vishnoi said.
He said those who engaged in stone pelting and those who incited them will be identified and action taken against them.
District Magistrate Rajendra Pesia said, "Some miscreants resorted to stone pelting but the situation is peaceful now and the survey is underway."
Videos of youths throwing stones at police, purportedly near the site of the survey in Sambhal have surfaced on the Internet.
Supreme Court lawyer Vishnu Shankar Jain, who is also the petitioner in the case, had said the Court of Civil Judge (Senior Division) ordered the constitution of an "Advocate Commission" to survey the mosque.
The court has said that a report should be filed after conducting a videography and photography survey through the commission, he had said.
The Central and Uttar Pradesh governments, the mosque committee and the district magistrate of Sambhal have been made parties in the petition concerning the mosque, Jain said last Tuesday.
Vishnu Shankar Jain and his father Hari Shankar Jain have represented the Hindu side in many cases related to places of worship, including the Gyanvapi Mosque-Kashi Vishwanath temple dispute.
Gopal Sharma, a local lawyer for the Hindu side, told PTI on Friday that in his petition filed in the court, he mentioned that "Baburnama" and the "Ain-e-Akbari" has confirmed that a Harihar temple was at the site where the Jama Masjid now stands.
He also claimed that the temple was demolished by Mughal Emperor Babur in 1529.
Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Zia Ur Rehman Barq had objected to the developments.
"The Jama Masjid of Sambhal is historical and very old. The Supreme Court had given the order in 1991 that whatever religious places are there in whatever condition since 1947, they will remain at their places," he had said.
The next date for hearing in this case is January 29.
VIDEO | Uttar Pradesh: Stones and slippers pelted in Sambhal when a survey team reached Shahi Jama Masjid to conduct a survey of the mosque.
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(Full video available on PTI Videos - https://t.co/n147TvrpG7)#SambhalJamaMasjid pic.twitter.com/K4QGGpzlMK