Madikeri:  Over 4,000 people are housed in various relief camps at Madikeri and Somwarpet taluks and relief supplies are not reaching the camps at remote areas. The focus is on Madikeri and Suntikoppa towns where there is a heavy concentration of the relief materials that have been despatched from various parts of the State including Mysuru and Bengaluru.

Truckloads of relief materials, including blankets, raincoats, water bottles, ready-to-eat and long-shelf-life foods are being dumped at Madikeri and stocks are increasing by the day. The materials are, however, not being equally distributed.

“The Deputy Commissioner’s Office and several community halls are being used as stock rooms for the relief materials. While there is a good and un-interrupted supply of food and materials to relief camps in Madikeri, some camps that have been set up beyond the town limits are not getting any food and they are forced to spend their days with just two meals a day,” said a volunteer manning a camp that has been set up for the villagers of Makkandur.

These relief camps in the middle of towns are frequented by VVIPs and everything looks hunky-dory as even media is focussing on these camps. But the situation is bad at other relief centres that are facing severe shortage of food, water, blankets and other materials, he alleged.

This apart, the relief materials are allegedly being diverted to shops and business establishments. “Some vested interests, in the guise of volunteers, are selling huge stocks of relief materials to shops and are making money. Materials are being diverted to homes of some influential elected representatives,” the volunteer alleged.