I-Day: CM Bommai announces new schemes on sanitation, nutrition, farm labour and soldiers' welfare
Bengaluru(PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Monday said his government has decided to launch new schemes on sanitation, nutrition, and for the well-being of farmers, labourers and the brave soldiers of the state on the 75th anniversary of India's independence.
He also said that the state government wants to empower Karnataka to make a contribution of at least USD 1 trillion to realise Prime Minister Narendra Modi's dream of transforming India into a USD 5 trillion economy.
"In order to create a clean and hygienic environment in government schools and colleges, 100 per cent toilet coverage will be achieved in the state at a cost of Rs 250 crore," Bommai said.
In his address at the 76th Independence Day event at the Manekshaw Parade Ground here, he said a loan-cum-subsidy scheme up to Rs 50,000 will be launched to support potters, blacksmiths, carpenters, sculptors, Bhajantri, basket weavers, Vishwakarmas, Madars and other artisans.
The "Raitha Vidya Nidhi" for farmers' children will be extended to landless agriculture labourers too, he announced.
Aimed at promoting education for farmers' children, the Chief Minister's Raita Vidya Nidhi scheme was launched by the government for the first time in the country, under which, scholarship of Rs 439.95 crore to 10.03 lakh children has been distributed. The scheme was subsequently extended to weavers, fishermen and yellow board taxi drivers' children too.
Noting that 4,050 new anganwadis will be opened based on requirement, with special focus on dwellings of landless labourers, the Chief Minister said, "With this initiative, children of 16 lakh families would be benefitted with nutrition and early education. This will also create job opportunity for 8,100 women."
Further stating that soldiers dedicate and sacrifice their life to protect the country, he said, if a soldier from the state dies on duty, government job will be provided to one member of his family on compassionate grounds to provide security to his family. "Also, Rs 25 lakh will be given to the kin, without any delay."
Pointing out that many new schemes were announced from the same platform last year to mark the 75th year of the country's independence and to celebrate the 'Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav' meaningfully, Bommai said he is happy that the schemes were being completed as per the deadline and they will herald a new dawn in the life of all Kannadigas.
Highlighting that his government's moto is to build 'New Karnataka for New India', he said, "We have to become number one in the country in development, in enhancing skilled human resources, in new industries. This is our dream and let's all strive together to achieve it."
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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.
