Mangaluru: Citing the severe drought prevailing in Karnataka, the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha, Dalit Sangharsha Samiti, and Parisarakkagi Naavu have urged Kambala buffalo owners in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi to voluntarily step away from the Mysuru kambala event.
Urging govt and organisers to cancel the event, he said that people in more than 200 taluks in the state have been facing an acute shortage of water. He alleged that over 50 trees and shrubs have already been cleared to facilitate the event. Ramaswamy condemned the state govt’s Rs 2,500 drought crop-loss compensation as an insult to struggling farmers. He said that once the money is credited, farmers in the state plan to return it to the chief minister’s Relief Fund with an added Re 1, bringing the total to Rs 2,501.
AT Ramaswamy, state president of Parisarakkagi Naavu, told reporters on Monday that the hardships being faced by farmers due to drought need to be addressed.
Ramaswamy said that the organisations respect the traditional folk sport of Tulu Nadu. Questioning the need to hold a kambala event at a time when farmers are facing an acute water shortage crisis, he said that lakhs of litres of water will be required for the event. Raising concerns over environmental impacts, Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha state president Badagalapura Nagendra said that the venue selected for the event has hundreds of trees, shrubs and habitats for small animals and birds. The forest department registered an FIR in connection with this too, he said, questioning the organisers for allegedly damaging the environment. “Owners of the buffaloes should reconsider their decision to transport buffaloes to Mysuru for the event considering the welfare of the animals,” they said.
However, he noted that it was not the right time to organise kambala in Mysuru. Environmental activist Leela Shivakumar and other leaders expressed concern over taking buffaloes to the event during summer heat.