Amasebail may become 1st Solar Village in Udupi District

Amasebail may become 1st Solar Village in Udupi District

Udupi: A G Kodgi, former chairman of the Third Karnataka State Finance Commission and president of Amasebail Charitable Trust, said that various development works and welfare projects will be inaugurated at Amasebail on June 1.

Addressing the mediapersons at a press meet held at the Press Club, he said that the Amasebail Charitable Trust had been formed for the purpose of initiating development works and welfare projects in Amasebail. The trust has decided to install solar lamps in 1,497 houses in the Naxal-affected Amasebail Gram Panchayat. The total cost of installation of the solar lamps is Rs 2.13 crore.

Of this, Rs 1.39 crore is being provided by the union and the state governments under their various schemes. The trust will collect about Rs 81 lakh from beneficiaries.

The solar unit which includes two individual lamps now costs Rs 9,000 and with four solar lamps will costs Rs 16,000. Beneficiaries will have to pay just Rs 3,000 for the unit with two solar lamps and Rs 6,000 for a unit with four solar lamps. The Amasebail gram panchayat will be installing 20 solar street lights from its funds at a cost of Rs 23,500.

SELCO Solar Light Private Ltd has been entrusted with the installation of the solar lamps through the e-tender process. As per tender conditions, the company will provide full guarantee of five years for the solar lamps and also take care of its maintenance.

The funds for the project will include finances made available by the Karnataka Bank, the Amasebail Gram Panchayat, the Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala Rural Development Project (SKDRDP), local cooperative societies, philanthropists, and also local area development funds of MLAs, MLCs, and MPs.

Veerendra Heggade of Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala is the honorary president of the Amasebail Charitable Trust and A G Kodgi is the president. The treasurer is a representative of Karnataka Bank and the secretary is a representative of the Kodgi Trust.

The other members of the trust include the Udupi district in-charge minister, Udupi MP, MLAs of Kundapur and Byndoor, representatives of Navodaya Charitable Trust, Kodgi Trust, and SKDRDP, zilla panchayat and taluk panchayat members representing Amasebail Gram Panchayat, president of the Amasebail Vyavasaya Seva Sahakari Bank, and the president of the Amasebail Gram Panchayat.

On June 1, various developmental projects will be inaugurated in the presence of various state ministers, MLAs and MPs. Justice Santhosh Hegde, former retired Lokayukta, will launch the project for the installation of solar lamps. Vinay Kumar Sorake, district minister in-charge, will inaugurate the Agriculture Market while Abhayachandra Jain, minister for Fisheries and Youth Affairs, will inaugurate the Fish Market. Executive director of Karnataka Bank, Jayaram Bhat will inaugurate the boy’s toilets in Amasebail High School. Dinakar Babu, president of Udupi Zilla Panchayat, will inaugurate the drinking water unit. Other dignitaries present at the inauguration will be Dr Mohan Alva (Chairman of Alva’s Institutions), Dr R Vishal (DC Udupi), Shobha Karandlaje (MP, Udupi-Chikkamagaluru), B S Yeddyurappa (MP, Shivamogga), Halady Shrinivas Shetty (MLA Kundapur), Gopal Poojary (MLA Byndoor) Kota Shrinivas Poojary and Prathapchandra Shetty (MLC), Jayalaxmi Shetty (President Amasebail Grama Panchayat), Hiriyanna (President Karnataka Fisheries Development Board) and Priyanka Mary Francis (CEO Udupi Zilla Panchayat).