Rs 178 Cr package for coconut growers
Cabinet takes a decision
Bengaluru, October 04: The Cabinet on Thursday decided to release Rs 178 crore package for the coconut growers whose coconut plantations have become unproductive due to continuous drought in the state.
After the Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy at Vidhana Soudha here, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Krishna Byre Gowda said that it was decided to give Rs 400 per tree or Rs 18,000 per hectare of plantation as relief package, for which, the Horticulture department would submit a proposal . The state government had submitted a proposal to the central government for incentive for the coconut growers a year ago. But nothing was happened. So, it was decided to give incentive to the farmers and this would help the growers in Chitradurga, Tumkur, Hassan, Chamarajnagar, Mandya and other places, he said.
As the agreement between the state government and the GVK Company to provide 108 ambulance service was expired, it was decided to continue the old agreement for one more year with the company. Within next one year, tender process for the fresh agreement and ambulance service would be completed, he said.
The Cabinet has given administrative approval to take up various development works at Hassan government engineering college at a cost of Rs 50 crore. It was also approved to set up a super speciality hospital on the premises of the Hassan Institute of Medical Sciences at a cost of Rs 129.75 crore and in the first phase, Rs 50 crore would be released immediately, he said.
The Cabinet also decided to set up Government Tool Room and Training Centre in Yadagiri, Humnabad, Lingasugur and Hospet in collaboration with Dassault Systemes India Private Limited at a cost of Rs 224.08 crore, of which, the government would invest Rs 21.7 crore and the rest would be borne by the Dassault company, he said.
The Cabinet also decided to withdraw the proposal submitted to the Central government in 2016 on appointing retired IAS officer V. Umesh as the State Administrative Tribunal Member and set up State Horticulture Excellent Centres Agency in the state. The Cabinet also decided to give Rs 2,000 monthly pension for five years along with Rs 5 lakh compensation to the family of those who were killed from wild animals attacks, he said.
The Cabinet also decided to handover 4.7 acre of land belonging to KSRTC Hassan Regional Workshop to Hassan Cooperative Milk Union and withdraw 14 criminal cases booked against Raita Sangha, Pro-Kannada activists and general public in various police stations across the state, the Minister added.
It was decided to start cardiac treatment unit with Cath Lab facility in Bidar Institute of Medical Sciences at Rs 7.25 crore and cardiac treatment centre along with the Cath Lab facility at Super Specialty Hospital of Shivamogga Institute of Medical Sciences at a cost of Rs 7.81 crore, he said.
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Pvt bus operators demand immediate hike in payment rates for buses requisitioned by EC
Kolkata (PTI): A representative body of private bus operators in West Bengal on Tuesday demanded an immediate announcement of higher payment rates for requisitioned vehicles to be deployed during the assembly elections next month, alleging that repeated appeals to the Election Commission in this regard have been ignored.
In a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer, the Joint Council of Bus Syndicate said that despite two rounds of communication with the authorities, no decision has yet been conveyed to them for hiking the rates for acquiring buses and minibuses for poll duty.
Even after two letters to the CEO’s office regarding the fare for the acquisition of buses/minibuses for elections, the operators have not received any decision so far, Syndicate Secretary Tapan Banerjee told PTI.
“The election dates have been announced for April 23 and 29. Central forces have already arrived in the state, and the administration has begun to requisition the buses for their movement. But we are yet to know the EC’s response to our demands,” he said.
“As we have to bear the expenses of fuel and wages of our conductors and drivers, our demand must be addressed immediately,” Banerjee added.
The bus operators have placed a detailed set of demands, including revised daily rates excluding fuel costs. “We demand Rs 4,000 per day (excluding diesel) for ordinary buses, Rs 4,500 for express buses, and Rs 5,500 for AC buses,” the letter stated.
In addition, the union has sought a daily allowance for workers.
“A daily allowance of Rs 500 must be provided to workers on duty,” it said.
The letter also stressed payment terms, demanding advance compensation and timely settlement of dues.
“At least 75 per cent of the payment should be made in advance, and the remaining amount must be cleared within 15 days of bill submission,” the union said.
Raising concerns about workers’ voting rights, the union further stated, “Arrangements for postal ballots must be ensured for workers on duty so that no worker is deprived of voting.”
Among other logistical concerns, the union demanded that a bus from one district should not be deployed in another.
