Mangaluru: Rural development and panchayat raj department secretary and Dakshina Kannada district in-charge secretary Sameer Shukla directed officials to fast-track land approval for new hostel buildings of the social welfare, backward classes welfare and minority welfare departments. At a district-level review meeting Tuesday, he said construction must be expedited and warned that delays will not be tolerated. He also asked officials to check hostel students’ health and monitor food quality. Reviewing the guarantee scheme, he told officials to register pending Gruha Lakshmi applicants and release funds quickly. With 100 KSRTC electric buses approved for Mangalore, he sought immediate steps to purchase and operate them and to set up charging stations. Under Jal Jeevan Mission, 650 projects worth Rs 482 crore have been completed, achieving 84% progress. Shukla asked officials to finish the rest by Feb-end, repair dug-up roads and verify Har Ghar Jal completion in gram sabhas. He also expressed dissatisfaction with KRIDL for not starting approved works.
