BELLARY, NOV 05 (Fr Thomas Santhosh):Â 50 newly built houses were blessed and inaugurated by the Bishop of Bellary Henry D’Souza on Oct. 30 and handed over to the flood affected families of Raichur district.
The houses were built jointly by Caritas India, KROSS and BDDS (Bellary Diocese Development Society) and formed the second installment of a total of 80 houses.
Bishop D’Souza blessed the 20 houses in Dumti village and the vicar general Fr. Chowrappa blessed another 30 in Benaknal in the much economically backward Raichur district.
Administrator of Caritas India and the regional representative Jimmy Mathew handed over the keys to the beneficiaries.
The project managed by BDDS headed by Fr. Paulraj, in association with Caritas India and KROSS, Bangalore.
Of the 80 houses built, 30 houses are built in Muddanaguddi (4 Kms from Pothnal), 20 in Dhumthi (10 kms from Jawalgera) and 30 in Benaknal (13 kms from Maski).
Each house consists of 2 rooms with 250 sq. ft. area, with “solid column structure and RCC roofs with a cost estimation of about Rs. 1,35,000 for each house”, said Fr. Paulraj.Â
The construction was completed within a year.Â
In his message, Bishop of Bellary lauded the work done by BDDS under the leadership of Fr. Paulraj and his team. Also, he thanked the two agencies – Caritas India and KROSS for their timely help.
Bishop D’Souza thanked the families for their generous contribution and cooperation. He urged them to work collectively to get sanitation facilities at the earliest.
The Shrine of Bellary Arogya Mathe was blessed and dedicated on 8th September 2000 on the feast of the Nativity of our Blessed Mother Mary in memory of the great jubilee 2000 and the Golden Jubilee of the Diocese of Bellary