Siddaramaiah flays govt over flood relief

Opposition Leader Siddaramaiah on Thursday said Prajavani and Deccan Herald newspapers have been publishing comprehensive reports on the plight of the people in North Karnataka, who are awaiting government aid and struggling to make both ends meet.

Addressing a press conference here, he displayed more than 10 photocopies of the special reports on flood victims, published in the newspapers.

“Chief Minister Yediyurappa has alleged that the Opposition parties are trying to create confusion over the flood situation. Are the reports in the newspapers false?" he questioned.

"The BJP, after conducting a survey of the flood situation, has informed that the loss was around Rs 35,160 crore. But, the Union government has not even allocated 10% of funds. In Badami alone, 43,000 houses have been damaged. I have complete information," he claimed.

“Not even a single farmer has been compensated. The weavers and shopkeepers are awaiting compensation. As Badami is one of the affected constituencies, I cannot keep quiet”, he said.

Speaking about dairy farmers, Siddaramaiah said that he had given Rs 5 as incentive per litre during his tenure as chief minister. "But, the farmers have not been remitted subsidy amount since six months. The government has to pay arrears of Rs 800 crore to farmers. Yediyurappa is doing injustice to farmers," he charged.

Commenting on Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), Siddaramaiah said, the Centre is eager to sign the free trade pact. “Our support is with the farmers, who are protesting against the pact," he said.