BJP leaders to travel across K'taka in teams from Aug 21 preparing for polls: Yediyurappa
Bengaluru/Mantralayam (PTI): Senior BJP leader B S Yediyurappa on Thursday said party leaders will begin their travel across Karnataka in teams from August 21, as part of preparations in the run-up to the 2023 Assembly polls.
Bengaluru/Mantralayam (PTI): Senior BJP leader B S Yediyurappa on Thursday said party leaders will begin their travel across Karnataka in teams from August 21, as part of preparations in the run-up to the 2023 Assembly polls.
The former Chief Minister reiterated that he will not be contesting any polls here on, but will work with other BJP leaders for the party's victory and installing it in power in the State.
"From 21st (August) we will all begin travelling across the state, we have not yet decided on from where to start and it will be soon decided...in three to four teams headed by various leaders we will travel across the state in all districts," Yediyurappa said.
Speaking to reporters in Mantralayam, a pilgrim village located in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh, he said the BJP will go to every division and organise large-scale events gathering lakhs of people.
"No doubt, Congress leader Siddaramaiah's 75th birthday event was a huge one, but in a month's time after our events are planned, you will realise what's our strength and what was theirs (Congress')," he added in response to a question whether Siddaramaiah's mega event will cause any setback to the BJP.
Rejecting speculation regarding Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai being replaced, the veteran leader said he doesn't expect any changes to happen at this point in time, when elections are expected in seven to eight months.
"There is no need for it (change) as well, as he (Bommai) is doing a good job, so I expect that he will continue, so there is no truth in this speculation," he said.
Responding to Congress' criticism against BJP, accusing it of forcefully removing him as CM and neglecting him, Yediyurappa reiterated that he voluntarily resigned (as CM) to make way for others, and no one forced him to do so.
"The talk that I'm being neglected in the BJP is not right, the position and respect that the party has given me cannot be compared with, I was made CM four times, I was given all sorts of responsibilities. I have faced no injustice from the party in any kind. It is my duty to pay back as a worker and will do it," he said.
Stating that during his meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah last week in Bengaluru, they discussed political developments in the state, Yediyurappa said he has assured him about working along with other leaders towards bringing BJP back to power in the state.
Reiterating that he will not contest in Assembly or any other elections hereon, the senior BJP leader said he will continue to remain in politics and work day and night for the party's victory.
"I have already said if the central leadership agrees, Vijayendra (son) will contest from Shikaripura (his Assembly constituency). If the party's central leadership agrees he will contest and win," he said.
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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.
