The State Cabinet on Thursday decided to implement a one-time settlement option for those who have indulged in illegal quarrying by paying their penalty.
Briefing media persons after the Cabinet meeting, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H.K. Patil said the total quantum of penalty slapped on firms indulged in illegal quarrying had totalled up to ₹6,105 crore. The penalty had not been recovered for nearly eight years, the Minister said.
A Cabinet sub-committee would be formed under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah for deciding the guidelines for one-time settlement scheme, he said.
He explained that the penalty had been slapped after conducting an audit on the quantum of the area that had been mined beyond their allotted area and the non-payment of royalty in this regard.
Change to ‘Kodava’
The Cabinet also decided to implement the recommendation of the backward classes commission and the order of the Karnataka High Court by changing the word under OBC caste list 3A-2 category to Kodava/Codava and Kodavaru from the earlier Kodagaru.
Egg procurement
Eggs for being given to anganwadi children and pregnant women as well as new mothers would now need to be procured at the divisional level by calling tenders instead of the earlier system of localised purchases as the State Cabinet has decided to effect changes in the egg procurement norms for this scheme. The total number of beneficiaries under the scheme would be more than 29 lakh, the Minister said, while pointing out that the government had imposed a condition that the price of egg should not exceed ₹6.
The Cabinet also authorised the Chief Minister to constitute a Cabinet sub-committee to empower the Forest Department to recommend to the Centre to declare the areas surrounding the national parks as “environmentally sensitive”, the Minister said.
The Cabinet also decided to grant ₹130.4 crore under Nabard’s Rural Infrastructure Development Fund Scheme-28 to the APMCs to create necessary infrastructure, including roads.
The Cabinet also granted administrative clearance for releasing ₹22.7 crore for the construction of Charaka Super Speciality Hospital at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Medical College and Research Institute. It also approved the revised estimate of ₹26 crore for building an annex for the Nephro Urology Centre on the premises of the Victoria Hospital, the Minister said.
Karnataka State Road Regulatory and Development Authority to be constituted
The State Cabinet on Thursday decided to constitute Karnataka State Road Regulatory and Development Authority led by the Chief Minister to identify priority roads that could be taken up for development under the PPP model and prepare detailed project reports, among others.
According to Law Minister H.K. Patil, the proposed authority would also take steps to attract private investments for road development.
67 prisoners to be released
The Cabinet has decided to grant remission of sentence to 67 prisoners who are serving life sentence in different prisons of the State on the occasion of Independence Day. These prisoners were chosen for grant of remission of sentence on the basis of their good conduct and age, said Law Minister H.K. Patil.
