Demand in RS for compensation to families of those killed in

A demand for compensation to the families of 23 persons killed in the Tiware dam breach in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra was raised in Rajya Sabha Thursday.

Raising the issue through a Zero Hour mention, Husain Dalwai (Cong) said it is not true that incessant rains in the region led to the breach of the dam.

The district collector was on February 12 in writing informed of the dam requiring urgent repairs but it was never done, he said.

The dam, he said, was built in 2012 at a cost of Rs 12 crore against the initial estimate of Rs 2 crore.

He demanded that compensation be paid to families of the dead and those whose houses were washed away be rehabilitated.

Also, action should be taken against the contractor and engineer, he said.

While Ajay Pratap Singh (BJP) raised the issue of delays by builders in handing over houses to buyers, B Lingaiah Yadav (TRS) wanted underpasses to be built at National Highways in Telangana.

Raising the issue of high cut off in Delhi University admissions, R K Sinha (BJP) demanded all colleges under the university start evening classes so as to immediately double the student intake.

A K Selvaraj (AIADMK) wanted subsidy for farmers growing fruits and vegetables through drip irrigation be increased to make up for the additional cost incurred in high density farming and where higher intensity irrigation is required due to soil quality.

He also wanted compensation paid under crop insurance be given considering individual farmers as one unit and not taking village as a unit in case of crop failure.

While Vijay Pal Singh Tomar (BJP) wanted laws be made to deter food adulteration, Vijila Sathyananth (AIAMDK) wanted that the monthly stipend of Rs 400, which was stopped in December 2016, be restored for child labourers.