Minister assesses damage by rain

The Minister visited the Mayasamudra bridge which has partially collapsed following heavy rains that lashed the district in the last fortnight.

He also paid a visit to Muttige lake outside Hassan which breached following torrential rain and damaged standing crops in the surrounding areas.

Talking to reporters, he said the district incurred a loss of ` 40 crore in property and crop damage in the recent rains. The Government has released ` five crore as compensation so far.

The Chief Minister would be apprised of the situation and appealed to release more funds, he added.

He asked the officials to complete the repair of the breached tank bund in a week.

Criticism

Speaking at the Zilla Panchayat, he said the Government had handed over the investigation of illegal assets and irregularities in allotment of land and other properties by Devegowda family to the CoD.

“The probe has begun. Everything will be clear, when the investigating agency submits its report,” he said.

The Minister said Chief Minister Yeddyurappa allotted the sites within his powers and rules laid down by the Government. Former chief minister Dharam Singh had allotted sites to many of his close relatives and Yeddyurappa did nothing compared to his predecessors.

In reply to a question over MLA H D Revanna’s statement that state government would collapse after solar eclipse, he ridiculed saying: “I am not sure when Revanna turned into a soothsayer.

He gave similar statement predicting fall of Government on Oct 11 and should recall what happened to his prophecy. Devegowda family must shun cheap politics and cooperate with investigation,” he added.