BENGALURU: Upa Lokayukta Justice B Veerappa, on his recent surprise visit to the Primary Health Centre at Huliyar town of Chikkanayakanahalli taluk in Tumakuru district, received a long list of complaints from locals. The major problems highlighted include: white blood cell, platelet test not being done; X-ray machine not functioning; the only ambulance of the hospital is out of order; doctors arrive at 11 am and leave at 4 pm, and are not available during the night.
The situation at the taluk hospital at Chikkanayakanahalli town is not much different from the PHC, with people welcoming the Upa Lokayukta by narrating the series of problems they are facing daily.
The 100-bed hospital is visited by 400-500 patients daily. No seating facility for patients to sit, mad rush at the counter for admission, no drinking water, cleanliness inside and outside the hospital and toilets lack hygiene.
All windows of the hospital, including those in the corridor, were closed because weeds had grown around the hospital. The prescriptions were issued to buy medicines outside. The drug store inside the hospital is not open at night, forcing the patients to buy medicine outside. The drunken people coming from outside are creating a nuisance at night.
Therefore, Upa Lokayukta Justice Veerappa registered a total of eight suomoto complaints against all the concerned, after taking the stock of the situation in Chikkanayakanahalli taluk.
In Chikkanayakanahalli tahsildar’s office, the public complained that family tree, birth, death, income and domicile certificates are not being issued in the prescribed time.
In the Town Municipal Corporation at Huliyar, the water is being lifted directly from the Borana Kanive dam without purifying for the drinking of the people of Huliyar. The locals complained that the water is unfit for drinking, and hence they are using it only for washing clothes and utensils. Since there is no underground drainage, the sewage of the town is joining the Borana Kanive dam. The corporation, which has 16 wards with a population of around 20,000, has not properly managed the waste.
When Upa Lokayukta visited, it was found that there were no toilets for ladies and gents and no drinking water facility at the KSRTC bus stand at Huliyar. The bus stand has become a home for the destitute and beggars, besides a mosquito breeding centre. Garbage was scattered. The dilapidated bus shelter may collapse anytime.
The college students at KSRTC Bus Stand at Chikkanayakanahalli town complained to Upa Lokayukta that there are not sufficient buses to reach the surrounding villages and also towards Bengaluru. In the Chikkanayakanahalli town taluk office, the applications for khatas were kept pending.
The authorities have not cleared the encroachment of the Navilu lake and Raja Kaluve. The Municipal Corporation of Chikkanayakanahalli has not taken steps to dispose of waste and to clear the footpath encroachment.