Shift families unwilling to move out with police help from flood-prone areas: Minister
Mangaluru: Karnataka Revenue Minister R Ashoka on Saturday instructed district deputy commissioners and revenue officials to evacuate people from their houses with the help of police in flood-hit areas even if they are reluctant to move out.
He was speaking at a review meeting on flood management at the zilla panchayat office here. He cited the incident in which the chief priest of Talacauvery and his family allegedly refused to shift from their home after being directed by officials and are now feared buried under a massive landslip.
If some occupants in flood-affected areas are unwilling to move out of their houses despite several warnings, officials should seek police protection and evacuate them to safer places, he said.
Proper arrangements should be made for providing food and other facilities for inmates at relief centres, the minister said. Immediate grant of Rs 10,000 should be provided to all those affected by the rains.
Dakshina Kannada deputy commissioner K V Rajendra and revenue officials briefed the meeting on the rain situation in the district. District-in-charge Minister Kota Srinivas Poojary, superintendent of police Laxmi Prasad and MLAs in the district were present.
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BWSSB to extract biogas from sewage sludge
Bengaluru (PTI): The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) is set to roll out a major biogas initiative to extract compressed biogas from sewage sludge, aiming to generate over Rs 120 crore in additional revenue over the next two decades.
The project approved by the state cabinet is expected to be the largest of its kind in the country, utilising about 550 MLD of sewage across five major sewage treatment plants, according to an official release.
"This brilliantly structured PPP model allows us to generate over Rs 120 crore in fresh revenue without investing a single rupee in capital or operations," BWSSB Chairman Ram Prasath Manohar said in the statement.
Under the project, raw biogas currently used for in-house power generation or flared will be upgraded to CBG meeting national standards for injection into the city gas distribution network or use as a clean transport fuel, the release said.
The initiative will be executed on a public-private partnership model, with the private concessionaire bearing the entire Rs 85 crore capital expenditure and operational costs, while BWSSB will provide land within treatment plant premises.
Describing it as a step towards energy security and the circular economy, officials said the project could serve as a national model for similar urban initiatives.
