Udupi: The ‘Kattada Samagri Sagata Vahana Maalaka-Chalakara Sangha’ on Monday staged a protest in front of the DC office here urging to simplify the sand policy and immediately resolve the issue.

Addressing the protesters, Sangha leader Raghavendra Shetty said that the district administration is directly responsible for the sand problem in the district. Measures should be taken to resolve the sand issue immediately. Sand mining must be allowed at all the 170 sand dunes.

Former president of Kundapur taluk panchayat Bhaskar Billawa said the sand issue should have been addressed earlier. Now it has become a disaster and the district administration is directly responsible for this. The district administration must immediately come forward to resolve the issue, he urged.

More than a hundred lorries were parked on the national highway and staged the protest. Barricades have been installed in front of the Deputy Commissioner's office in the wake of the strike and the security has been beefed up everywhere.

 

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Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has received complaints against 719 employees for allegedly using fake disability certificates to avail benefits under various schemes, Minister Atul Save informed the legislative assembly on Tuesday.

The divyang welfare minister said that verification of disability certificates has been made mandatory following directions issued by the Centre and the state department, and strict action will be taken in case of irregularities.

"The government has received complaints against as many as 719 government employees for allegedly using fake disability certificates to avail benefits under various schemes," he said while responding to a question raised by NCP (SP) MLA Bapu Pathare.

Save said that complaints were filed against 78 employees in Satara, 46 in Pune and 26 in Latur.

"In Pune district, 21 employees have been suspended from their posts for submitting fake certificates, and two were removed in Nandurbar," he informed the House.

As per government instructions, employees whose certificates are found to be fake or whose disability is assessed at less than 40 per cent will face action under Section 11 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, along with disciplinary proceedings.

The minister said that a government resolution issued on October 9 directed all departments to complete verification of disability certificates and submit detailed reports within three months, by January 8, 2026.

So far, complaints related to fake UDID certificates have been received against 719 employees, and the concerned departments have been instructed to verify the cases and initiate action as per rules, he said.

Only those with benchmark disabilities of 40 per cent or more are eligible to avail benefits such as reservation in government jobs, promotions and other schemes, the minister added.