Govt apathetic towards rain-hit dists, say BJP MLAs

The BJP MLAs from coastal and Malnad regions claimed that over 20 people have died and hundreds of dwelling houses have been washed away in the heavy rains and floods in the last few days.

In the Legislative Assembly on Monday, they accused the State government of inaction in giving relief to the affected people.

Vishweshwara Hegde Kageri said rains have wreacked havoc in eight to nine districts in coastal and malnad regions. Besides loss of lives, extensive damage has been caused to public properties. Roads have been damaged, bridges have collapsed and power supply has been cut off. But the government is in deep slumber. Though the local officials are aware of the situation, they are not responding. While majority of them are involved in the annual transfer exercise, others have turned a blind eye. “This shows the lack of seriousness on the government's part in dealing with the issue,” he charged.

Appachu Ranjan said entire Kodagu has been flooded, five people are reported to have died so far, and hundreds of houses have been damaged. The government should act immediately, give compensation to the affected and restore damaged public properties, he said. K G Bopaiah said Kodagu district has plunged into total darkness. The local power utility has hardly taken any step to restore the supply. The deputy commissioner says he cannot spend money meant for flood relief for restoring power supply. The government has not supplied kerosene properly to people, he complained.

D N Jeevraj said Sringeri is now surrounded by flood waters of the Rivers Tunga and Bhadra. There is a scarcity of boats for people to cross the rivers. Heavy rains and floods have thrown normal life out of gear, so much so that people have not been able to take dead bodies to burial grounds, he added.

Flood threat

BJP floor leader and former chief minister Jagadish Shettar said north Karnataka districts, such as Belgaum and Bagalkot, are likely to face flood threat, if the Maharastra government releases more water from Koyna dam. The Karnataka government should be in touch with the Maharastra officials to get prior information on the release of water, he added.

Revenue Minister V Srinivas Prasad said that about 15 people are reported to have died due to heavy rains and floods in the State. The government has been reviewing the situation and taking all necessary steps. There has been extensive damage to both private and public properties in many districts. But in districts like Tumkur, rains have been below normal, he added.