Karnataka govt to provide additional compensation of Rs 8,500/hectare for crop damage from rains or floods

Kalaburagi: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said the government will provide additional compensation of Rs 8,500 a hectare to farmers affected by heavy rain in Kalyana Karnataka and Kittur Karnataka regions. This will be over and above the compensation provided under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) norms.

Siddaramaiah, who conducted an aerial survey of flood-affected districts of Kalaburagi, Bidar, Yadgiri and Vijayapura, told reporters after chairing a meeting of elected representatives, ministers and officials in Kalaburagi on Tuesday that dry land farmers will now get Rs 17,000 a ha instead of Rs 8,500.

Farmers of irrigated land who sustained crop loss will get Rs 22,500 (instead of Rs 17,500) and farmers who cultivate using multiple water sources will get Rs 31,000 a ha. This additional assistance to farmers will cost the state exchequer Rs 2,000 crore, said the chief minister.

Siddaramaiah said Kalaburagi, Bidar, Yadgir, Vijayapura, Belagavi, Bagalkot, Dharwad, and Gadag received above-normal rainfall this year. Apart from excess rain, Kalaburagi, Vijayapura and Yadgir reported crop loss due to heavy discharge of water from Maharashtra’s reservoirs.  

He said crops on nearly 9.60 lakh ha of land were damaged due to excess rain with 95% of the affected farmers in North Karnataka. Floods impacted 117 villages across Kalaburagi, Vijayapura and Yadgir districts and district administrations have set up 80 relief camps. Nearly 52 people lost their lives this year due to rain-related incidents, he said.

Preliminary estimates say the state may have sustained crop loss worth Rs 1,000 crore. This apart, there has been damage to public property like roads, bridges, barrages and individual properties like houses. “Everyone will receive fair compensation after a joint survey,” he said.

The meeting decided to seek Central assistance on the lines of Maharashtra, which received a Rs 2,200-crore package from the Union government. Soon, a delegation will be taken to Delhi to meet the prime minister, home minister and finance minister seeking additional funds, he said.  

The chief minister said currently there is no dearth of funds and every PD account of the DC has sufficient funds for emergency rescue and relief
operations.

“The state government had initiated a joint survey of crop loss in the first week of September. However, the state suffered second round of crop damage due to excess rain in Kalaburagi region and release of water from Maharashtra’s Ujani and Neera reservoirs,” he said and added that so far, officials of the revenue and agriculture departments have completed the joint survey of nearly five lakh ha of land.

“There would be confusion if we distribute relief to only those farmers who sustained losses earlier,” he said.

The state government is also considering using surveyors, revenue and agriculture officials from other non-affected districts to conduct joint surveys in these four districts.

He instructed officials to build temporary and permanent barriers where necessary to prevent further damage. “Officials should visit every government school in flood affected villages to take stock of their stability. If schools fail in fitness tests, then students should be shifted to safer places,” he said.