25 districts have got above normal rainfall: Revenue Minister
Five districts have recorded deficient rainfall, says Krishna Byre Gowda
Revenue Minister Byre Gowda during an inspection of the flood situation in Srirangapatna following the release of water from Krishnaraja Sagar, on Saturday.
| Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRRANGEMENT
Minister for Revenue Krishna Byre Gowda on Saturday said 25 districts had recorded above normal rainfall, registering a 28 per cent surplus. Only five districts, including Kolar, Bengaluru Rural, and Chickballapur have recorded deficient rains, he added.
Speaking after inspecting the heritage Wellesley Bridge at Srirangapatna following heavy discharge from the Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS), he said most dams in the State were full and over one lakh cusecs of water was being released into the river from KRS.
With rains receding, the flood situation was easing in the Krishna river area, he said.
Steps had been taken to ensure that the district administration responded immediately in case of floods in low-lying areas in the Hemavathi and Cauvery river basin, including Hassan, K.R. Pet, T. Narsipur, and Srirangapatna taluks, Mr. Gowda informed.
The Minister said the district administration in Mandya had been asked to take steps for plugging water leakage by placing stones instead of sandbags following breach of the bund at Mandagere in K.R. Pet taluk. This step would prevent the caving in of earth, he said.
Efforts had to be made to persuade those living in the flood-prone areas to shift to safer places.
“We understand that the people have emotional attachment to their homes and to their fields that are closer to their homes, but safety is important,” he said.
The Minister said agricultural and horticultural crops had had been affected to some extent, and the actual crop damage would be known in about a week.
Mr. Gowda said it was difficult to provide compensation for the loss of crops grown on riverbanks and closer to the backwaters of the dam as this was not legal.
He said the deputy commissioners’ accounts in the State had ₹770 crore for disaster management.
A sum of ₹20 crore had been set aside for Mandya district alone, and all taluks had received ₹25 lakh each.
“The government approaches the NDRF whenever there is a major crisis, otherwise the State handles the situation on its own,” he said.
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