CM Siddaramaiah reviews rain preparedness, asks officials to take precautionary measures
Bengaluru, May 23: With Karnataka expecting above normal monsoon rains, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday directed district administrations to take necessary precautionary measures to tackle the situation arising due to heavy rains, and asked them to ensure preparedness for sowing and other agricultural activities to be taken up by farmers.
The CM and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar held a meeting through video conferencing with Deputy Commissioners (DCs) and CEOs of Zilla Panchayats of all districts to review the monsoon preparations besides the drought relief activities so far.
"Pre-monsoon showers in May have been above normal, at some places it is 40 percent and in some it is 50 or 60 per cent, also sowing has begun in some districts. According to the weather forecast by the met department the monsoon rains will be above normal this time. There are chances of increased rainfall in some places," Siddaramaiah said.
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Addressing reporters after the video conferencing, he said in the wake of flooding caused by rains the district administrations should be prepared to cope with the situation by taking all the necessary measures.
Officials have been instructed to take up pre monsoon preparations like dredging, removal of obstructions for the flow of water to tanks, rivers and other water bodies, the CM said adding all precautionary measures should be taken up at places prone to flooding.
As the sowing season commences, authorities have been asked to ensure that there is no shortage in supply of seeds, fertilizers and pesticides across the state.
Regular kharif sowing will start from June across the state in about 80 lakh hectare.
"District level officials have been warned that they will be held responsible in case of any lapses or negligence, and appropriate action will be taken against them," he added.
Regarding the drought relief to affected farmers, Siddaramaiah said his government has provided Rs 2,000 each to about 34 lakh farmers, and the Rs 3,454 crore National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) funds from the Centre has also been distributed to the peasants.
"Instructions have been given to Deputy Commissioners of all the districts that if there are any issues in distribution of relief with regards to verification in some places, it has to be resolved and the process should be completed soon."
Karnataka has declared 223 out of 240 taluks as drought-hit and 196 of them were categorised as severely affected.
Amid reports of Cholera cases due to consumption of contaminated water in Mysuru, the CM said directions have been given to the DCs across the state to ensure supply of clean drinking water, and to supply water after testing.
"At two places in Mysuru, there are reports of Cholera, one in my own constituency's (Varuna) Tagadur , there has not been any death there. But in neighbouring Chamundeshwari segment's K Salundi village one person has died due to cholera. Our district in-charge Minister H C Mahadevappa has visited the village and I also spoke to officials. Forty people fell ill and they were provided treatment... there is no danger to life."
Around Rs 826 crore is available with DCs and Tahsildars in the state, and there should not be any problem for supplying drinking water and also fodder for cattles, he said, adding that, "if necessary new borewells should be dug."
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3rd T20I: A three-match 'audition' starts for Gill to find his game back
Dharamsala (PTI): The countdown to save his place in the playing XI begins for a beleaguered Shubman Gill, who is likely to get three matches against South Africa to prove his worth before the Indian team management switches to a ‘Plan B’ ahead of the T20 World Cup, starting in six weeks.
As India gear up to play the third T20I against the Proteas on Sunday in sub-10-degree temperatures in the lap of the ice-clad Dhauladhar range, things are suddenly heating up in the Indian dressing room, with the prolonged poor form of skipper Suryakumar Yadav coming under the scanner.
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Worse, his deputy Shubman Gill, who was pushed into the XI at the expense of a settled Sanju Samson, is not inspiring much confidence.
The South African pace attack featuring Anrich Nortje, Marco Jansen, Lungi Ngidi, Ottniel Baartman and Lutho Sipamla — has shown how to bowl on Indian tracks, and the HPCA Stadium strip, offering extra bounce and some movement off the surface, will certainly keep them interested.
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Among all T20 sides, South Africa, in terms of personnel, appears to have the requisite balance to win the trophy in the Indian subcontinent this time. Quinton de Kock’s return, along with the likes of Aiden Markram, Dewald Brevis, Donovan Ferreira, David Miller and all-rounder Jansen, gives their batting an intimidating look.
With only eight games, starting from the third T20I, left before the start of the T20 World Cup title defence, India's under-fire head coach Gautam Gambhir won't be able to afford, two out-of-form top-order batters in the starting line-up.
Being the skipper of the side, Surya will certainly have immunity going into the T20 World Cup despite being completely out of form for the past one year but same can't be said about Gill, who wasn't the original choice as an opener.
Gill's entry into the T20 set-up was a classic case of trying to fix something that ain't broken and things haven't looked good so far.
In this backdrop, Gill would need to bat out of his skin to prove that Ajit Agarkar-led committee wasn't wrong in throwing Samson under the bus for one bad series against England.
The stylish Indian Test and ODI skipper will have to find his T20 game and at least score in two of the three matches if he doesn't want Samson to get his rightful place back or for that matter, find Yashasvi Jaiswal, with a fabulous T20I strike-rate of 165, enter the fray during New Zealand series.
Lack of clarity
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While head coach Gambhir is too proud a person to admit but sending Axar Patel as a one drop batter during the second T20I was a "tactical brain fade" from the team's think-tank.
The kind misstep that was taken with Axar's promotion is unlikely to be repeated in the third game where skipper is expected to go back to No.3 where he has got a lot of success in his first few years at the international level.
Similarly, Shivam Dube being sent at number eight due to the shuffling of batting order was another poor call which would need course correction in the next game.
Is there a place for Kuldeep Yadav?
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Kuldeep Yadav is one bowler who has consistently troubled the Proteas batter but in an Indian team where batting till No. 8 is non-negotiable, the left-arm wrist spinner often finds himself getting the rough end of the stick.
At Dharamsala too, he might have to sit out as Kuldeep and Varun Chakravarthy, two non-batters can't be clubbed in the same T20 playing eleven as that would lead to compromise in batting depth.
While Arshdeep hasn't had a good series so far, it will be interesting to find if team management can find a place for Kuldeep in the playing eleven with Hardik Pandya sharing the new ball with Jasprit Bumrah.
The five-match series is currently tied 1-1.
Teams:
India: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, NT Tilak Verma, Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Varun Chakravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Sanju Samson (wk), Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar.
South Africa: Aiden Markram (captain), Quinton de Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Donovan Ferreira, Marco Jansen, Lutho Sipamla, Ottniel Baartman, Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi, Corbin Bosch, Keshav Maharaj, George Linde.
Match Starts at 7 pm.
