Non-BJP states 'always short changed': K'taka Minister Priyank Kharge on Centre's flood relief
Bengaluru (PTI): Expressing displeasure over the central government's flood relief allocation to Karnataka, Minister Priyank Kharge on Monday said the BJP ruled states consistently receive more funds, while states not aligned with the NDA or the saffron party are "always short changed".
Kharge, who holds the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj portfolio, said the funds released are just not enough, given the huge losses reported by the state.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah has approved advance release of Rs 1,950.80 crore as second instalment of central share of State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) to Karnataka and Maharashtra for 2025-26.
Out of the total amount, Rs 384.40 crore has been allocated to Karnataka and Rs 1,566.40 crore for Maharashtra to help the two states provide immediate relief to people affected by extremely heavy rainfall and floods during the southwest monsoon this year, an official statement said on Sunday.
"It is becoming a regular practice by the central government where they stifle us by not giving us enough funds, although we are one of the highest GST collecting states, we are the highest IT (Income Tax) payee states, IT (Information Technology) exports we are number one, our contribution to GDP is more than 8.9 per cent," Kharge said in response to a question.
Speaking to reporters here, he said when it comes to the devolution of funds, devolution of taxes, Karnataka always faces unfair treatment.
"Even now as per the norms the funds that have been released, it is just not enough. We have reported huge losses. While BJP states get more, the states that are not with the NDA or BJP are always short changed," he added.
Several parts of Karnataka witnessed loss of lives, damage to property, crops and infrastructure due to rains and floods during the monsoon this year.
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Pune airport runway restored after IAF aircraft snag; ops resume
Pune (PTI): The runway at Pune airport, which was temporarily unavailable due to an incident involving an Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft, has now been restored and declared operational, the Air Force said on Saturday.
The authorities at the Pune International Airport had earlier said that around 10.25 pm on Friday, a fighter aircraft experienced an undercarriage failure during landing, causing the runway to be blocked.
As many as 91 flights of airlines, including IndiGo, Air India, SpiceJet, Akasa, and Air India Express, were affected due to the incident, they said.
Earlier on Friday night, the Air Force had stated that the runway at Pune airport was temporarily unavailable following an incident involving one of its fighter aircraft. The aircrew are safe, and there is no damage to civil property, it had said.
"The runway at Pune Airport, which was temporarily unavailable due to an incident involving an Indian Air Force aircraft, has now been restored and declared operational. All necessary safety inspections and clearances have been completed. Operations are resuming in a phased manner," it said in a post on X.
Flight operations at Pune airport are being gradually restored. The situation has been brought under control with the highest priority given to the safety of citizens, a Defence PRO said.
