HDK TO VISIT DISTRICT TODAY

BENGALURU: When Bheemaiah, a small coffee planter , fled his house one August night when floods and landslides hit Kodagu district , he never imagined he would have to spend the next three months in a relief camp . Even now, there is no end in sight to the woes of the 56-year-old father of three as he and his family remain marooned at one of two camps for the displaced people of the district.Bheemaiah is not alone though. Officials say while 500-1,000 people are in official camps, about 6,000 others live in temporary shelters and makeshift tents or in houses of friends and relatives. All of them hope the government will quickly provide permanent shelter and, more importantly, a livelihood for them.However, the pace of reconstruction and rehabilitation is painfully slow.“Although the JD(S)-Congress government was quick to provide relief initially, the zeal is missing in the rebuilding efforts,” said Ashwath Bheemaiah, a volunteer from Bengaluru working for the welfare of survivors. “Going by the current pace, people may be permanently settled only by 2020.”Although the Centre released Rs 526 crore, the government is yet to draft a comprehensive rebuilding plan. “Without a clear plan, funds will not be released. This is true of any government project,” said Kundyolanda Dinesh Cariappa, who runs Fort Mercara in Madikeri.Vidyuth Aiyappa, another volunteer, said, “There appears to be no coordination between the ministries, district administration and local BJP MLAs.”The state government gave each displaced family Rs 1 lakh and announced the formation of the Kodagu Development Authority to rebuild the district, but work has stalled since then.Meanwhile, NGOs including Infosys Foundation have been working quietly to get people back in their own homes. “People of Kodagu have great self-respect so we are focusing on building the livelihoods of 1,400 poor families,” said Thamoo Poovaiah of Kodagu Seva Kendra. “The Infosys Foundation has helped build cow sheds and poultry farms.”The government on Thursday constituted the Kodagu Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Development Authority to rebuild Kodagu. The authority will be headed by chief minister HD Kumaraswamy , with revenue minister RV Deshpande and tourism minister Sa Ra Mahesh as deputies. All public representatives of Kodagu will be members. The government also issued an order directing the administration to pay Rs 10,000 as rent to each displaced family. Mahesh, who is Kodagu district in-charge minister, said Kumarswamy will visit Kodagu on Friday and lay the foundation stone for houses. The houses will be built on 110 acres.