Distribution of substandard agricultural implements to farmers and collection of donation by private schools were among the many issues that figured at the Mysuru Zilla Panchayat general body meeting here on Thursday.
Javare Gowda and Javarappa, ruling party members, alleged that substandard equipment were distributed to farmers in the district. They accused the Agriculture Department of giving inferior quality traditional plough. They said that though farmers had refused to buy them even for half price as the government provides 50 per cent subsidy, the agricultural officers had distributed them in other places clandestinely.
The members wanted to know why the officers had forced the farmers to buy substandard implements. Members, cutting across party lines, said the implements were rendered useless a couple of days after use.
President of zilla panchayat Pushpavathi Amarnath and Chief Executive Officer of ZP P.A. Gopal summoned the Joint Director of Agriculture Mahanteshappa to get his opinion on the charges.
Later, Ms. Pushpavathi said the implements were supplied by the State government and the district-level and taluk-level officers had no role to play in it. The government selected the supplier and placed the order for the implements, she said and asked the members to direct the farmers not to buy inferior quality implements hereafter.
She also directed the Chairman of Standing Committee (Agriculture) to inspect the implements supplied by the government.
Ms. Pushpavathi directed the Joint Director to involve ZP members while distributing the implements.
DonationH.R. Bhagyalakshmi, member, alleged that many private schools were collecting donation from parents in the garb of development fees.
Mentioning a private school in H.D. Kote, she said the school had collected donation from her for admitting her child. The president asked the Deputy Director of Public Instruction and Chairman of the Standing Committee (Education) to visit private schools against which allegations were made.
If the schools indulged in collecting donation, take stringent action against them, she told the DDPI.
