Yadgir district’s backwardness, mainly in the education sector, was taken up for discussion during a quarterly Karnataka Development Programme (KDP) meeting here on Friday.
The meeting was chaired by Minister for Small Industries and Public Enterprises and district in-charge Sharanabasappa Darshanapur. All three MLAs from Yadgir, Gurmitkal and Shorapur and Leader of Opposition in the Council Chalavadi Narayanaswamy were present.
The data provided by officers shows that the district has to achieve more in many sectors with concrete programmes and effective implementation by the government.
The district has 1,065 primary and high schools run by the Education Department. As many as 1,61,167 students have enrolled for the year and a total of 7,174 teachers posts has been sanctioned.
However, 3,804 teachers are working, while 3,370 posts are lying vacant. And, the officers are managing the primary section through 2,700 guest teachers. But there are still 670 posts in the high school section vacant and officers have been forced to run classes with the help of guest teachers.
In addition, a total of 6,037 classrooms are available in 1,065 schools. But out of the 6,037 classrooms, 833 classrooms need major repairs, while 652 classrooms need minor repairs. As many as 4,552 classrooms are in good condition.
The situation in the pre-university section is different. A total of 23 government PU colleges are functioning in the district, with 19,356 students enrolled in first and second pre-university classes.
For the 23 colleges, 23 posts of college principal have been sanctioned, but only two posts have been filled and the remaining 21 are vacant. Out of the 228 sanctioned lecturer posts, 134 are filled, while 94 remain vacant.
Yadgir district fell to the 32nd place when results for 2022-23 were announced, with a 62.98 pass percentage. It stood 26th in 2023-23 with 74.23 pass percentage.
While explaining about the initiatives taken to improve pass percentage, the officers said that 94 lecturer posts — those that fell vacant — have been filled with guest lecturers to run classes.
Special classes are being held for students who are weak in learning and also a WhatsApp group has been formed to inspect the progress of students learning.
Health sector
An officer from the Health Department said that they filled 19 doctor and 13 specialist posts last month.
However, 12 specialist posts are yet to be filled. The problem is that no candidates are applying for the posts, though salary between ₹1.30 lakh and ₹2 lakh has been fixed.
When Mr. Darshanapur asked about dialysis machines functioning, they said that five machines are functioning in the District Hospital. With these machines, the number of patients being given dialysis is around 300 per month. Two new machines each for Gurmitkal, Wadagera, and Hunsagi hospitals have been sanctioned but they are yet to start functioning.
Anganwadis
Mr. Darshanapur suggested that Deputy Commissioner B. Susheela, Chief Executive Officer Laveesh Ordia and officers of the Women and Child Development Department submit a detailed report on the availability of places with facts for the construction of new anganwadi buildings. This suggestion came after an officer said that a total of 1,568 anganwadis exist and of these, 935 have their own buildings, while 115 do not have own buildings, though there is place for construction.
Cotton procurement
The district administration recently announced cotton procurement centres. At present, 21 such centres are functioning and farmers are selling cotton under the Central government’s Minimum Supportive Price Scheme. Now, 1,600 farmers are getting benefits and ₹34.50 crore payment has been made against cotton purchases, officers said.
Meanwhile MLA Sharanagouda Kandkur suggested closure of these centres as there has already been many complaints against some discrepancies. Farmers are complaining about moisture measurement in cotton in these centres, he said and added that a representative from the department should be deployed there to help farmers selling cotton.
Agriculture Department officers said that 90% of crop damage survey has been completed in the district so far.
Tree maintenance
MLA Raja Venugopal Naik expressed dissatisfaction over maintenance of trees after saplings are planted by the Forest Department and suggested that the officers concerned hold a meeting to discuss proper protection for trees to ensure more greenery. The officers said that 1.60 lakh trees have been planted across the district.
Animal husbandry
An officer from the Animal Husbandry Department said that 90% of vaccine, including FMD, has been administered to cattle. Also, initiatives to administer anti-rabbies vaccination to dogs are on. A sum of ₹56 lakh has been released for compensating the death of 258 livestock due to lumpy skin disease.
When an officer said that 300 vacant posts will be filled through KPSC, Mr. Kandkur asked what action has been taken except to send proposals. Mr. Darshanapur said that this has to be taken up at the government level, not with officers.
National highways
Officers of the National Highway Authority of India said that a bypass for Yadgir city is pending due to pending land acquisition. A Detailed Project Report for a two-lane highway between Hattigudur and Tinthini will be prepared, as ₹480 crore has been sanctioned for the project.
Mr. Narayanaswamy urged the officers to establish government offices and provide basic needs to newly established taluks, including Wadagera, as people in those taluks are disappointed with poor public amenities.
Mr. Darshanapur directed the officers to provide drinking water, basic needs and proper food in hostels run by the various departments when Mr. Naik brought up the issue of lack of food supply in a hostel in Shorapur.
MLA Channareddy Patil Tunnur, MLC B.G. Patil, Superintendent of Police Pruthvik Shankar, DFO Kajol Patil and district-level officers were present.
Published - November 23, 2024 07:35 pm IST
