Bengaluru: There have been severe floods in some parts of Karnataka this time, while some parts are facing drought. There are at least 16 districts in Karnataka where low rainfall has been recorded and the government is considering declaring them as drought-prone. On the other hand, some areas of South Kannada, Udupi, Chikmagalur, Kodagu, Hassan and North Kannada have been in the constant grip for the past few days. Three people have died in Kodagu.
According to data provided by the revenue department, since June this year, there have been very few rains in the southern part of Karnataka and in 12 districts of the northern part of the country. Dr. GS Srinivas Reddy, Director, State Natural Disaster Monitoring Center said that in the northern part, the situation is bad in 10 out of 12 districts. He said, “We did hundred meetings and discussed the issue of low rainfall in 16 districts.” Reddy said that the process of declaring districts which have low rainfall has been started already and the government will take action on the basis of the recommendations of the revenue department by the end of this month.
He said that after this relief measures will be started. According to the data released by the State Disaster Campaign Center, the situation is bad in Raichur, Vijaypura, Yadgir and Gadg districts due to bad rainfall. On the other hand, Shivamogga, Hassan, Chikmagalur, Kodu, South Kannada, North Kannada, and Udupi have received more than normal rainfall and there are flood conditions.
Due to floods and landslides in Kodagu district of Karnataka affected by rain, Army has been mobilizing in the rescue operation to save the stranded people. Kodagu’s deputy commissioner Shrividya confirmed 3 deaths. He told that connectivity has been interrupted and wireless connectivity is being set up for the rescue operation. The rivers Kaveri and Lakshman are flowing above the danger mark.
Several coastal districts and areas like South Kannada, Udupi, Chikmagalur, Kodagu, some areas of Hassan and North Kannada have been gripped for the last few days. The Chief Minister’s Office said in a statement, “National Disaster Response Force, Fire Department, Rapid Response Force and others have also joined the rescue operation.”
Chief Minister continuously approaching
Accordingly, Chief Secretary Vijay Bhaskar apprised Chief Minister Kumaraswamy about the rescue operations in the coastal districts and the Malnand areas affected by flood and landslide. According to the statement, the Chief Minister is in constant touch with the District In-charge, who is monitoring the rescue operations in the respective districts.
In-charge is managing the rescue operations. On Thursday, Kumaraswamy announced a grant of Rs 200 crore to the affected districts for relief work. Meanwhile, 17 trains have been canceled between Karnataka and Kerala. Apart from this, 8 trains were partially canceled while 2 trains were diverted due to heavy rains.