K’taka CM reassures relief aid to flood-hit districts
Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa on Sunday reassured financial compensation to the people of north Karnataka reeling under flash floods after heavy rains battered the region last week.
“The state government is providing compensation to the victims of heavy rains and flash floods in the state’s northern and northwest regions. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also promised financial aid to the state,” Yediyurappa told the media at his home town Shikaripura in Shivamogga district.
Shikaripura, the assembly constituency of Yediyurappa, is nearly 340 km northwest of Bengaluru.
The state government on Friday released Rs 86-crore emergency relief aid to a dozen districts in the state’s northern and coastal regions.
The various districts that were affected by heavy rains and flash floods due to extended southwest monsoon are Bagalkot, Ballari, Belagavi, Bidar, Gadag, Kalaburagi, Kodagu, Koppal, Raichur, Yadgir, Vijayapura and Udupi across the state’s north, northwest, coastal and southern regions.
The state government also sanctioned Rs 37 crore as subsidy to nearly 51,810 farmers who suffered crop loss due to flooding of their fields since August.
Yediyurappa also apprised the Central government of the grim situation in the state after heavy rains and flooding wreaked havoc in the affected districts, disrupting normal life and causing damage to the state infrastructure.
Though, rains receded in most of the affected districts, the marooned people are grappling with the devastation caused by floods, overflowing of rivers and their tributaries due to release of excess water from dams across them.
Among the affected districts, Kalaburagi and Vijayapura were the worst-hit, as 8-lakh cusec water was released from the Sonna barrage in Afzalpur taluk resulting in flooding of 150 villages in both the northern districts.
Release of excess water from Bheema river in Kalaburagi district also submerged nearly 50 villages and nearly 20,000 people were evacuated to safer places where relief camps have been set up to shelter them.
However, opposition Congress leader and former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah accused the ruling BJP government of neglecting the flood-hit people in the state.
“Though a dozen districts in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region are flooded, BJP ministers and the state administration have failed to provide rescue-and-relief operations to the affected people,” said Siddaramaiah in a series of tweets.
The Opposition leader also blamed the ministers in-charge of the flood-hit districts for not touring them and meeting the affected people in distress.