BJP leaders rule out change of guard in K'taka; Congress calls Bommai 'puppet CM'
Bengaluru, Aug 9: With speculation in some quarters about overhaul in Karnataka BJP, including replacement of the Chief Minister, once again coming to the fore, Opposition Congress on Tuesday took a dig at Basavaraj Bommai by calling him a "Puppet CM" even as some ruling party leaders ruled out the possibility of a leadership-change.
In recent times, there has been buzz on and off within the State BJP regarding some kind of an overhaul, particularly after the visit of Union Home Minister Amit Shah to the State.
The principal Opposition party, claiming that the ruling party is on the backfoot following overwhelming response to Congress heavyweight Siddaramaiah's 75th birthday celebrations, said, "With no face" to go for polls the BJP is attempting to install a "puppet CM" in the seat of power.
"When the State is suffering, it is power-play for the BJP. Instead of providing relief to the people suffering from floods at a warfooting, the BJP in Karnataka is looking at installing its third Chief Minister. Whenever the State is in distress, the BJP begins its powergame," Karnataka Congress tweeted.
It looks like Bommai is "counting hours to leave the chair," the Congress said while questioning as to whether developments linked to speculations about CM-change was due to administrative failure, fight within the BJP or is it because of B S Yediyurappa's anger .
"Despite efforts, 'Keshava Krupa' (RSS State headquarters here) never accepted Bommai who is from the Janata Parivar as the Sangh Parivari...whether this attempt to change 'puppet CM' Bommai is to follow your tradition of having 3CMs?" asked the Congress. The party said that after Shah's visit to the State recently, there is an "overcast" in the State BJP and the "puppet show" seems to have come to an end.
These comments from the Congress came a day after former BJP MLA B Suresh Gowda indicated about some change, and said the high command would take a call on replacing the Chief Minister and other matters in the interest of the party and to win the elections in future.
Bommai, who took over from Yediyurappa as the Chief Minister, completed one year in office on July 28.
The '3 CMs' reference by the Congress, in its tweets, is with regard to the earlier BJP government between 2008-2013, which saw three Chief Ministers -- Yediyurappa, D V Sadananada Gowda and Jagadish Shettar.
Meanwhile, hitting back at the Congress, Health Minister K Sudhakar said that the grand old party was dreaming about CM-change, and that the BJP government was stable under Bommai's leadership.
Taking a dig at Congress leaders Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar, he said the two leaders were "guarding the gates" of the Gandhi (Sonia Gandhi) family with a dream to become the Chief Minister.
Chief Minister's political secretary and MLA from Honnali M P Renukacharya said like Modi and Yediyurappa, Bommai is doing a good job, and there is no question of change.
He said Congress, rattled by factionalism and infighting, was spreading false information. "Our immediate goal is to work for the people and help those affected by floods and rains."
Shah, who was in the State last week, had met Bommai, Yediyurappa and senior state BJP leaders. He is said to have discussed with them recent developments, organisational matters, allegations of corruption against the government and preparations ahead of the 2023 polls.
He is said to have specifically gathered information regarding the recent "communal" murders, including that of BJP activist Praveen Nettar in Dakshina Kannada district, that triggered widespread protests and a spate of resignations of its Yuva Morcha members at various places, accusing the State government of not standing up to protect the lives of Hindu 'Karyakartas'.
Several Hindutva ideologues and organisations, too, have expressed their angst against the government by expressing similar views.
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Los Angeles county wildfires could be costliest in US history, early estimates say
Los Angeles, Jan 11: The wildfires that erupted this week across Los Angeles County are still raging, but already are projected to be among the costliest natural disasters in US history.
The devastating blazes have killed at least 11 people and incinerated more than 12,000 structures since Tuesday, laying waste to entire neighbourhoods once home to multimillion-dollar properties.
While it's still too early for an accurate tally of the financial toll, the losses so far likely make the wildfires the costliest ever in the US, according to various estimates.
A preliminary estimate by AccuWeather put the damage and economic losses so far between USD 135 billion and USD 150 billion. By comparison, AccuWeather estimated the damage and economic losses caused by Hurricane Helene, which tore across six southeastern states last fall, at USD 225 billion to USD 250 billion.
“This will be the costliest wildfire in California modern history and also very likely the costliest wildfire in US modern history, because of the fires occurring in the densely populated areas around Los Angeles with some of the highest-valued real estate in the country,” said Jonathan Porter, the private firm's chief meteorologist.
AccuWeather factors in a multitude of variables in its estimates, including damage to homes, businesses, infrastructure and vehicles, as well as immediate and long-term health care costs, lost wages and supply chain interruptions.
The insurance broker Aon PLC also said Friday that the LA County wildfires will likely end up being the costliest in US history, although it did not issue an estimate. Aon ranks a wildfire known as the Camp Fire in Paradise, California, in 2018 as the costliest in US history up to now at USD 12.5 billion, adjusted for inflation. The Camp Fire killed 85 people and destroyed about 11,000 homes.
The LA County wildfires, which were fuelled by hurricane-force Santa Ana winds and an extreme drought, remained largely uncontained Saturday. That means the final tally of losses from the blazes is likely to increase, perhaps substantially.
“To put this into perspective, the total damage and economic loss from this wildfire disaster could reach nearly 4 per cent of the annual GDP of the state of California,” AccuWeather's Porter said.
In a report Friday, Moody's also concluded that the wildfires would prove to be the costliest in US history, specifically because they have ripped through densely populated areas with higher-end properties.
While the state is no stranger to major wildfires, they have generally been concentrated in inland areas that are not densely populated. That's led to less destruction per acre, and in damage to less expensive homes, Moody's noted.
That's far from the case this time, with one of the largest conflagrations destroying thousands of properties across the Pacific Palisades and Malibu, home to many Hollywood stars and executives with multimillion-dollar properties. Already, numerous celebrities have lost homes to the fires.
“The scale and intensity of the blazes, combined with their geographic footprint, suggest a staggering price tag, both in terms of the human cost and the economic toll,” Moody's analysts wrote. The report did not include a preliminary cost estimate of the wildfire damage.
It could be several months before a concrete tally of the financial losses from the wildfires will be possible.
“We're in the very early stages of this disaster,” Porter said.
