Rs 2.2 cr interim relief for 5,800 in flood-hit Kodagu
Bengaluru: The Karnataka government on Monday announced Rs 2.2 crore interim relief for 5,800 people rescued from flood-hit Kodagu district.
“The government has initiated steps to pay interim relief of Rs 3,800 per family to 5,800 distressed people in the relief camps,” Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy told reporters here.
The heavy rains, leading to flooding and landslips, have claimed 12 lives in the district while 4,320 have been rescued, he said.
As the intensity of rains reduced on Monday, the rescue operations reached the last phase, officials said.
“About 50,000 affected people will also be given groceries and essential commodities through mobile units,” Kumaraswamy added.
A total of 5,618 people have been sheltered at 41 relief camps in Kodagu and 340 in three camps in Dakshina Kannada district, which has also received heavy rains.
Cut off by landslides and damaged roads, the coffee-growing Kodagu district, located in the Western Ghats, has been the worst affected in the state due to southwest monsoon since June first week.
As per government’s estimates, 845 houses, 123 km of roads, 58 bridges, 278 state-owned buildings and 3,800 electric poles have been destroyed.
The district administration has been directed to distribute new uniform and text books to the students.
Schools have been asked to complete the syllabus through special classes to compensate for the loss of 20 days in the last three months due to rains.
Around 1,725 personnel from the Indian Army, Navy, Indian Air Force (IAF), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), state police, National Cadet Corps (NCC), Home Guards and district officials were involved in the relief operations.
On a request from the state government, the IAF training command in Bengaluru rushed on August 17 one Mi-17 helicopter for rescue and relief operations.
“The chopper carried five sorties each on August 18, 19 to rescue the stranded people despite bad weather. After two attempts on August 18, the chopper reached the landslide affected area Mukkodlu and dropped relief material for the stranded people,” the Air Force said.
Union Minister Ananth Kumar rushed from Bengaluru a truck-load of generic medicines (Jan Aushadi) for diabetes care, blood pressure control, cardiac and kidney ailments to the affected people in the district, about 270 km from the state capital.
Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara also rushed four trucks of essential commodities and food items to the people in relief camps in Kodagu.
The Bengaluru civic corporation (BBMP) has donated Rs 2 crore to the flood victims in Kodagu and Rs 1 crore to people in Kerala, Parameshwara told reporters.
He said the entire police force would donate a day’s salary to the flood victims in Kodagu and Kerala.
“We are also arranging to rush pre-fabricated housing panels for the homeless in Kodagu district to shelter them,” Parameshwara said.
In addition, the state-run Karnataka State Road Transport Corp (KSRTC) has donated Rs 11.8 crore to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund.