Government should hold meet to resolve Yettinahole issue - Eshwarappa

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, Dec 15, 2015: Addressing media, K.S. Eshwarappa, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former Deputy Chief Minister, said on Dec 14, Monday that the State government should hold a meeting of experts and elected representatives to resolve the Yettinahole River Diversion tangle.

 

Eshwarappa said that there was a vertical divide between the legislators in Dakshina Kannada and those from the parched districts of South Karnataka over the Yettinahole River Diversion project.

While the legislators including Ministers of Dakshina Kannada did not want water to flow to South Karnataka because of environmental and other issues, the legislators from South Karnataka wanted the water from Yettinahole as their districts faced severe drinking water problem.

“Instead, the government wants the problem to be on boil as it will divert attention from its administrative failures,” he said.

 Eshwarappa said that the State government had passed the Panchayat Raj Amendment Bill without any proper discussion on it in the legislature session. The government had failed to incorporate all the recommendations of the Ramesh Kumar Committee Report in the Bill.  The State government had given the status of Minister of State for the zilla panchayat president in the Bill, but without any real powers. Similarly, gram panchayats were suffering from lack of funds and struggled to pay electricity bills.

To questions, Eshwarappa replied that the BJP was likely to win 10 to 15 seats in the Legislative Council elections in the State.