Mallikarjun Kharge ticks off govt on response to floods

Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge has attacked the state government over the delay in responding to the flood-affected population of the state.

Speaking at the sidelines of an event held to commemorate the 78th anniversary of Quit India movement here on Sunday, Kharge urged district in-charge ministers to visit flood-affected regions of the state and take up relief activities.

Last year too Kodagu suffered significant damages, Kharge said, noting the damages suffered by the district. “The government should take measures to address the issue. However, we are not seeing such an environment,” he said, criticising the state government’s response to the natural calamity.

On the one-lakh crore scheme for farmers announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kharge questioned how many people received benefits of the Rs 20-lakh crore scheme announced by the centre. He accused the government of harassing labourers and other sections of society, by using the Covid-19 pandemic as a pretext.

KPCC working president Eshwar Khandre accused the government of ignoring warnings for heavy rainfall. “Several people have lost their lives, while thousands of acres of cropland was inundated,” he said.

Khandre alleged that the government was yet to rehabilitate the thousands of people who lost their homes during the previous floods.

Siddaramaiah tweets

Failure of the state government to provide relief for last year’s flood damage has aggravated floods this year, Opposition Leader Siddaramaiah said on Sunday.

In a set of posers to Deputy Chief Minister and Public Works Department Minister Govind Karjol, Women and Child Development Minister Shashikala Jolle, Primary and Secondary Education Minister Suresh Kumar and Housing Minister V Somanna, he sought details on the flood relief activities carried out following the devastating floods last year.

“I had warned the ministers a month ago about the same, but as usual, there was no response,” Siddaramaiah, who is currently hospitalised after testing positive for Covid-19, said in a tweet.

HDK wants more aid

Demanding that the government sanction additional relief for farmers who suffered crop loss due to floods in Karnataka, JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy has urged it to ensure permanent relief for those who lost houses.

Along with those who lost houses in the August 2019 floods, the government should ensure a permanent rehabilitation for flood victims this year, he said.

“The government’s promise of providing compensation worth Rs five lakh for those who lost houses during the floods last year did not benefit a majority of the victims,” the former chief minister said in a tweet.

Rather than sticking adamantly to National and State Disaster Relief Fund guidelines, the government should provide additional compensation, he added.