B V Shiva Shankar
BENGALURU: While thousands across 22 districts are still picking up the pieces following the floods in July and August, parts of Karnataka are reeling under severe drought-like conditions. The government is set to declare 30 taluks across 13 districts drought-hit as rainfall continues to be deficient in these areas. These taluks in Bengaluru Urban, Bengaluru Rural, Ramanagar, Kolar, Tumakuru, Chitradurga, Davanagere, Chamarajanagar, Raichur, Kalaburagi, Bagalkote, Vijayapura and Gadag districts already qualify as drought-hit.
“We have taken note of the severity of drought and initiated preliminary procedures to declare drought in 30 taluks across 13 districts,” said revenue minister R Ashoka. “A cabinet subcommittee will meet in a couple of days and a formal declaration will be made shortly thereafter.” Once the taluks are declared drought-hit, all measures including claiming grants from the Centre will be pursued on a war-footing, Ashoka said.
However, opposition parties who have been raising a hue a cry over poor relief and rehabilitation work are unconvinced with the government’s criteria of declaring a taluk drought hit. Both MLAs and farmers allege that though more than 50 taluks have been hit by drought, but the government has only identified 30 taluks.
An example of a district that has been overlooked is Chikkaballapura, which borders Kolar. Although both districts witnessed dry spells for over two months, only taluks in Kolar figure in the list. This is also true of Mandya and Mysuru, which recorded below 40% sowing.
“It is unfair to ignore Chikkaballapura which received poor rainfall this monsoon,” said K Sudhakar, disqualified Congress MLA from Chikkabalapura. “I will speak to the revenue minister and urge him to declare the district drought-hit to ensure people get relief.”
Revenue department officials, however, attributed the discrepancy to a technicality adopted in determining drought-hit areas. As per guidelines laid down by the Centre, a village or a taluk should have recorded at least 60% less rainfall than normal or a dry spell for three weeks at a stretch.
“We need to go by these parameters in order to declare a taluk drought-hit,” said GS Srinivas Reddy, director, Karnataka State Disaster Monitoring Centre. After declaring drought, the government must send a report to the Centre claiming input subsidy (monetary compensation to be paid to farmers) for crop loss due to drought and aid for relief measure like providing drinking water and fodder.