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With more than two-thirds of the state hit by drought due to a truant monsoon, the government has decided to enforce strict austerity measures to mop up additional resources required to combat scarcity, Revenue Minister V Srinivas Prasad said on Saturday.
In an exclusive chat with Express, Prasad said taking note of the poor monsoon conditions, the State Relief and Rehabilitation Department had recommended adding 16 more taluks to the list of drought-hit areas, on Friday.
The state Cabinet, which had reviewed the monsoon conditions last week, had declared 98 taluks as drought-hit and directed the district authorities to take up suitable measures to combat drinking water and fodder crises.
The new taluks identified as drought-hit include Sorab (Shivamogga), Madikeri and Virajapet (Kodagu), Arsikere (Hassan) and a few taluks in Chamarajnagar, Mandya and Mysuru districts.
The Minister admitted that scarcity conditions were alarming in many parts of the state. “According to a conservative estimate, the government needs Rs 800 to Rs 1,000 crore to provide relief to people in drought-hit areas,” he said.
Prasad said taluks which had received less than 50 per cent rainfall or where sowing less than 50 per cent would be classified as drought-affected. Describing the situation as grim and comparable to the 1972 drought conditions, he said, “The Cabinet sub-committee on drought will meet shortly and brief the Chief Minister about the alarming conditions.”
The State Agriculture department sources said that with the failure of the monsoon, sowing may not take place on more than six lakh hectares of khariff land this year.
Sources said the government is still in the process of ascertaining the shortfall in the state’s agricultural output this year.
Prasad said ensuring potable drinking water, sufficient stock of foodgrains, fodder for the cattle and providing employment to the needy were among the priorities before the government.
The Minister added that there was an urgent need to take up relief works on a war-footing. “The Revenue Department is preparing a detailed report on the dry-spell and its impact on agricultural activities and submit it to the Union government to seek more funds to address the situation,” he said.
He, however, said the state government cannot wait for relief from the Centre. “The district and local administrations are being geared up to address the situation by pumping in whatever resources are available with the state government,” he said.
Courtesy of newindianexpress.com
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