Concrete steps taken by State Government to mitigate drought impact in Belagavi

The State Government is taking all necessary steps to mitigate the impact of drought in Belagavi district and ensure the welfare of farmers, District In-charge Minister Satish Jarkihole said on Sunday. He shared this important information during the State Festival celebrations organised at the District Stadium.

Minister Jarkihole stated that due to the drought, sowing for the Rabi crop could only be carried out on just 10% of the district's cultivable land. So far, sowing has been done on approximately 0.40 lakh hectares of land for all crops, which is only 10% against the set target of 4.1 lakh hectares. However, the situation was different during the Kharif season, where sowing was carried out on 7.50 lakh hectares against a total sowing target of 7.52 lakh hectares, showing an achievement of 99.70%. But, due to the lack of water, these crops had to suffer losses.

Due to a severe lack of rainfall, 14 talukas of the district have been declared drought-hit. It has been noted that agricultural crops suffered damage in an area of approximately 5.04 lakh hectares. The State Government has submitted a proposal of ₹680.32 crore to the Central Government for compensation for this crop loss. The Minister further added that, meanwhile, the State Government has announced compensation for drought-induced crop loss as internal relief.

The Agriculture Department assisted farmers during the Kharif season. Using a grant of ₹8.66 crore, the Agriculture Department distributed 32,882 quintals of high-quality seeds at subsidized rates to 79,637 farmers. Additionally, 2.04 lakh tonnes of fertiliser were distributed in the district during the Kharif season. Currently, the distribution of seeds and fertiliser for the Rabi season is underway.

As the Public Works Minister, Jarkihole stated that several infrastructure works, including roads and bridges started three years ago, are now nearing completion. He provided information that approximately ₹215 crore is being spent by the State Government for the development of Soundatti Yellamma Temple, which includes a grant of ₹100 crore from the Central Government.

During the State Festival, the Minister unfurled the national flag and received honours during the march past by various contingents. This march past included students from the Police and Fire & Emergency Services, District Armed Reserve and City Armed Reserve Police, Civil Police (Male and Female), Home Guards, KSRP, Excise Department, NCC Senior Boys and Girls, Bharat Seva Dal (from SLVK Agasa High School), Little Scholar Academy, Mahila Vidyalaya (Guides), Saraswati High School, Government High School (Ramatirtha Nagar, Shahpur), Morarji Minority Residential School, Divine Providence High School, D.T. Desai High School, Bharatesh Central School, B.G. Sheshagiri High School, St. Joseph's High School, and Maheshwari School for the Visually Impaired. The Minister also recalled the contribution of Kannada activists in the unification of Karnataka.

On this occasion, MLA Asif (Raju) Sait, Police Inspector General Sandeep Patil, Deputy Commissioner Mohammed Roshan, Police Commissioner Prakash Nikam, Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer Rahul Shinde, Superintendent of Police K. Ramarajan, Deputy Director of Kannada and Culture Vidyavati Bhajanti, and other dignitaries were present.