Lives of flood victims still in doldrums

"We received sanction orders for constructing houses. In the first phase, Rs 1 lakh was sanctioned. But the house has not been completed. We do not have a roof over our head and are staying in the house of relatives. As there is no crop on the farmland, we are finding it difficult to lead our lives...” reveals Shakunthala of Charmadi in Belthangady taluk.

She is one among the thousands of people struggling to lead a normal life in the aftermath of massive floods.

The heavy rain on August 9 wreaked havoc in the lives of the residents in Belthangady taluk. The massive landslides and flood completely damaged several houses in 17 villages in Belthangady taluk alone.

Sanction letters for the rehabilitation of 257 victims have been issued. “An amount of Rs 1 lakh has been credited to the account of the victims who have lost their houses in the rain. Depending on the progress in completing the house, the remaining funds will be released,” said Tahsildar Ganapathi Shastri.

A few works on the houses has been completed in the taluk. However, the government has failed to release the pending compensation amount, alleged Zilla Panchayat members.

Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr R Selvamani said, “The chief minister had announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh for those whose houses had been damaged completely. The compensation is being distributed. However, no compensation was announced for owners of houses damaged in the heavy rain in October and November. We have already written to the state government in this regard.”