Delay in drought relief from Centre leaves Karnataka high and dry

Karnataka, which has been desperately waiting for release of funds from the Centre under drought relief for 2012, stands the risk of not receiving any grants at all.

This is the fear harboured by the Revenue Department (Disaster Management), which has sought Rs 11,146 crore from the Centre under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) to carry out drought relief works chalked out for 2012.

The department apprehends that if the High-Level Committee headed by the Prime Minister fails to set aside an amount, before the Central budget, the State stands to lose all.

According to sources, the Committee has so far not considered Karnataka’s proposal because of the delay in submission of reports by Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh seeking funds under NDRF.

Besides, the recent Parliament session came in the way of the Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by the Union Agriculture Minister from holding a meeting in this regard and recommending grants for the three states.

The only silver lining for Karnataka is that it has learnt that the GoM will meet shortly. Officials said the release of funds was imperative, given the growing concerns over drinking water and fodder shortage.

The State has been reeling under drought from October 2011, and the number of drought-hit taluks now stands at 157.

The estimated loss in 2011 was pegged at around Rs 8,100 crore and the loss for 2012 was Rs 11,146 crore.

Given the extremity of the situation, the State government had sought Central assistance under NDRF, in addition to the grants released by it.

The Centre has, however, released only Rs 352 crore (Rs 70.23 crore in April 2012; Rs 282.35 crore in July 2012) for kharif and rabi crop losses in 2011. Karnataka is yet to receive any amount for 2012.

The State government has released 182 crore for 2011 and Rs 591 crore for 2012.
So far, the Revenue department has spent Rs 213 crore on agriculture input subsidy, Rs 63 crore on procuring fodder and Rs 251 crore on supply of drinking water through tankers and laying of water pipelines.