HUBLI: The State Government is taking steps to improve basic amenities in slums on the lines of developed layouts, Revenue Minister and district in-charge Jagadish Shettar has said.

Speaking after distributing "Record of Rights" to slum dwellers at Ranadamma Colony in Old Hubli on Sunday, Mr. Shettar called upon officials of Karnataka Slum Clearance Board to work towards taking the benefits of various government schemes to slum dwellers.

The Minister said the Government had begun handing over "record of rights" to slum dwellers wherever slums had come up on government property. However if the land belonged to a private person, then ownership of the land came in the way of distributing record of rights. According to a survey, for acquisition of such private property and improving basic amenities in such areas, thousands of crores of rupees would be required, he said.

Mr. Shettar said the Government was thinking of taking up registration of the "record of rights" given to the slum dwellers in the coming days.

Inaugurating the function, Dharwad North MP Pralhad Joshi felt that schemes meant for providing shelter were not reaching the poorest of the poor owing to red tape. Consequently, slums were mushrooming and the condition of slum dwellers was worsening, he said.

Mr Joshi underscored the need for officials of the departments concerned to make the system more transparent so that the benefits of the schemes reached the needy persons.

Basavaraj Bommai, MLC, said if the government officials failed to understand the gravity of the problem of housing of the poor, it would be difficult provide the relief at the right time.

He urged the Government to bring in amendments to clear legal hurdles involved in handing over the record of rights to slum dwellers.

Former minister Jabbarkhan Honnalli presided over the function. Former MLA Ashok Katwe, former Council Member Ranga Baddi, Pandurang Patil, KSCB official M.F. Narayankar, Raghavendra Ramadurg and others were present.

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