Bengaluru, July 19: Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar chaired a meeting on Sunday at Vidhana Soudha with district panchayat commissioners and chief executive officers (CEOs) to review the ongoing drought situation in the state and discuss measures to tackle the challenges arising from it.
The meeting focused on issues related to drinking water supply, availability of fodder for livestock, agricultural activities, job creation, and other relief measures to be implemented in drought-affected areas.
Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara, along with ministers K.J. George, Ramalinga Reddy, Eshwar Khandre, and Yathindra Siddaramaiah, attended the meeting.
Also present were Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh, the Chief Minister’s economic advisor L.K. Atique, Additional Chief Secretary Tushar Girinath, and senior government officials.
During the review, the Chief Minister instructed the deputy commissioners and district panchayat CEOs to work as Team Karnataka and effectively implement drought relief measures across the state.
While addressing the meeting in the conference hall of Vidhana Soudha, he emphasized his reliance on field reports over paperwork and warned officials against negligence.
He stated, “If discrepancies are found between field reports and the reports submitted by officials, action will be taken.”
The CM noted that Karnataka is currently experiencing a 60% deficit in rainfall, affecting 178 talukas. He urged the district administration to gather complete data within the next 15 days to facilitate the submission of a drought report to the central government.
To address the drinking water shortage, the Chief Minister announced an allocation of one crore rupees for each rural taluka and instructed officials to guide farmers on agricultural activities based on rainfall patterns and reservoir storage levels.
He also directed officials to ensure transparency in the drilling of new borewells by recording the process on video, warning that CEOs would be held directly responsible for any fraudulent or bogus borewell claims.
Shivakumar stressed the need to protect the interests of small and marginal farmers and urged officials to fully support teams assessing the drought situation in the state.
Deputy Chief Minister and Revenue Minister G. Parameshwara instructed officials to ensure that neither people nor livestock face difficulties amid the deteriorating drought conditions in Karnataka.
Speaking during a video conference chaired by the CM, Parameshwara reported a 68% deficit in rainfall and a decline in groundwater levels across 88 talukas.
He emphasized prioritizing drinking water supply, job creation, and fodder availability.
Parameshwara also directed officials to expedite work under the ‘Developed India-Gi Ram Ji’ scheme, hold weekly district task force meetings, and submit ground reports to facilitate drought relief measures and central assistance.
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