Ministers Vijayanand Kashappanavar and Ajay Singh trade charges with the opposition in the council on Tuesday
Bengaluru: The official tally of drought-hit taluks in the state climbed to 177 with the inclusion of another 53, with deputy chief minister G Parameshwara saying the number could cross 200 as ground assessments continue. He said Karnataka received 642 mm of rain against a normal 852 mm, with deficits of 46% in South Interior Karnataka and 44% in North Interior Karnataka. “To my knowledge, nearly 200 taluks will be declared drought-hit soon. He said crop loss was estimated at around 82%, and many farmers had lost two rounds of sowing. He said drought declarations were being made in phases after ground verification and in accordance with Centre’s 2020 guidelines.
Moving a motion on the crisis for discussion in the assembly and council, Parameshwara described the situation as a “super El Nino-driven drought” and said the rainfall deficit was the worst in more than 150 years and comparable to the 1876 drought. “This is not a drought limited to four or 10 taluks; it has affected the entire state,” he said. We cannot arbitrarily declare drought; taluks must meet the criteria,” he said.
However, the inclusion of Gadag triggered a furore in the legislature with BJP mocking govt over the decision since senior Congress MLA and former minister HK Patil had threatened to resign if his constituency was not declared drought-hit. “This is a continuous process. Ashoka also targeted govt over Gadag. “Is HK Patil an ignorant person? He served as law minister and knows everything. Will you explain to HK Patil why Gadag was not declared drought-hit? Congress MLAs themselves are pointing out the govt’s mistakes. Answer them.”