New furniture adorns the office. MA Nadaf said he hired an earthmover to remove wild plants around the building
GADAG: When MA Nadaf took charge as revenue inspector at Dambal village in Mundargi taluk of Gadag district a year ago, he saw the office in pitiable condition broken furniture, unclean toilets, filthy walls and damaged floor and the entire building was overrun by riotous growth of wild plants.
No stranger to effecting a turnaround in office infrastructure, 37-year-old Nadaf started giving the building a clean look, besides replacing furniture with more functional and new pieces, in Dambal too. He carried out the makeover with friendly gesture from villagers, who appreciated the officer’s initiative in giving the office a leg-up.
The beleaguered APMC traders have sought financial aid from the state government
BELAGAVI: The Agricultural Produce Marketing Committees (APMC) across North Karnataka are reeling under huge revenue losses after the dilution of APMC Act to facilitate free market outside the mandis. A sharp dip in revenue has led to 50% job cuts making it difficult to maintain and run the yards.
Nearly 50% of trade that was previously happening in the yards has moved out of the gates where business is tax free. The state government reducing market fee for trade inside has also come as a massive blow. The difference in the revenue of six months compared between 2019-20 and 20-21 narrates the plight of the mandis. According to the data, Belagavi APMC saw 129.3% fall in the revenue that comes mostly through cess. The total collection from August to January 2019-20 was Rs 3,98,60,114 and for the same months in the corresponding financial year it was just Rs 85,49,339.
PRICE PINCH: Rig Owners’ Association protests high diesel prices in Bengaluru on Tuesday
BENGALURU: High fuel prices have raised costs for the transport industry and this, in turn, is pushing up commodity prices. Traders and industry representatives have urged the state government to ease the impact by lowering local taxes.
Petrol is sold at Rs 92.3 per litre and diesel at Rs 84.5 in Bengaluru. The freight charges for all commodities have gone up by at least 75 paise per kg. “Wholesale prices of commodities are increasing because of higher freight charges and accordingly, retail prices are also climbing up,” said Lahoti, a former president of the Bangalore Wholesale Food Grains and Pulses Association.