Karnataka to write to Centre seeking funds for flood-hit districts: Report
Bengaluru: The Karnataka government has reportedly decided to approach the Centre for financial assistance following the widespread devastation caused by heavy rains in the northern parts of the state. The severe downpours have led to massive crop losses and extensive damage to infrastructure in several districts.
“The government was likely to write a letter to the Centre after the conclusion of the second survey. Once we have evaluated the extent of damage to crops and other infrastructure, we will submit a request for funds to the Centre,” Deccan Herald quoted its sources as saying on Sunday.
The relentless rains during September, combined with water releases from reservoirs in Maharashtra, have severely impacted the Bhima River basin region. Crops across approximately 7.24 lakh hectares in districts like Kalaburagi, Yadgir, Bidar, and Vijayapura were destroyed, triggering widespread concern among farmers.
Although a joint survey had initially been conducted to assess the damage, the continuing rains towards the end of the month necessitated another round of evaluation. The revised assessment now estimates that the total crop damage extends to 12.54 lakh hectares across the affected districts.
In line with the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) guidelines, the Karnataka government is preparing to draft a letter to the central government by the third week of October to request funding for relief operations, added the report.
However, the situation has raised concerns of a potential political clash between the state and central governments. In 2023, when drought conditions affected 216 taluks in Karnataka, the state had sought Rs 18,171 crore in aid from the Centre. Delays in the disbursal of these funds led the state to send a delegation to Delhi, but the matter remained unresolved, prompting the Karnataka government to take the issue to the Supreme Court.
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Reports on CM Naidu’s VB-G RAM G Act concerns significant: Siddaramaiah
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Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday said reports of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu flagging concerns over the VB-G RAM G Act’s funding pattern are politically significant and have implications for Centre-State relations.
These concerns assumed importance as they come from a key ally of the BJP whose support is critical to the Narendra Modi government, he said.
Sharing a news article titled "Naidu seeks assistance to state for enforcing new rural jobs law" on his official handle on 'X', Siddaramaiah said the VB-G RAM G Act must be repealed and the MGNREGA Act restored, with necessary reforms.
"The reports that the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh N Chandrababu Naidu has raised concerns with the Union Government over the implementation of the VB-G RAM G Act - especially regarding the altered funding pattern and the additional burden on states - are politically significant and consequential for Centre–State relations," he said.
Siddaramaiah claimed that for months, the Congress party and opposition-ruled states, including Karnataka, have warned that the VB-G RAM G Act undermines cooperative federalism by shifting financial responsibility onto states.
"A BJP ally now echoing these concerns exposes a clear rupture within the NDA and undermines the BJP’s defence of the law," he said.
Siddaramaiah demanded that the union government and the BJP explain why the same objections were earlier dismissed as political criticism, saying the contrast between the two laws is clear.
He highlighted that under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), rural employment was a legal right backed by assured central funding.
"Under the new Act, that certainty is lost. States are required to implement the programme while sharing the cost, without any statutory guarantee of funds. What was once a guaranteed right of the people has been reduced to a matter of negotiation," the Karanataka CM alleged.
He further alleged that this shift has serious implications, saying when a CM is compelled to seek “alternative financial support” through private discussions, it signals that access to funds is being determined by bargaining power rather than by law.
"In the present political context, this raises the risk that allocations may be influenced by political alignment, adversely affecting Opposition-ruled states, including Karnataka," he said.
Siddaramaiah said if NDA partners, especially the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, find the new framework unsustainable, these concerns must be raised openly in Parliament. They cannot be addressed through selective concessions or private assurances.
"The developments reported today make it clear that the VB-G RAM G Act must be repealed and the MGNREGA Act restored, with necessary reforms. Employment security cannot be converted into a negotiable arrangement. Cooperative federalism must be sustained through guaranteed funding and equal treatment of all states - not through uncertainty and coalition arithmetic," he added.
