Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda said small and marginal farmers need immediate assistance but panel that will sit on 23 December will decide on relief.
Published Dec 21, 2023 | 12:49 PM ⚊ Updated Dec 21, 2023 | 12:49 PM
Siddaramaiah and Krishna Byre Gowda meet Home Minister Amit Shah. (X)
Karnataka Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda, on Wednesday, 20 December, said the state government’s ₹18,171 crore drought relief proposal will be taken up by a high-level central committee on 23 December.
“A high-level committee chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah will, on 23 December, decide the quantum of drought relief to Karnataka,” Gowda told reporters after meeting Union Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda on the issue.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday, and requested for early release of the drought relief to the state, he said.
In his letter to the Prime Minister, Siddaramaiah stated that Karnataka has assessed the crop damage and is seeking an input subsidy of ₹4,663.12 crore from the National Disaster Response Funds (NDRF).
Around 48.19 lakh hectares of agriculture and horticulture crops have suffered losses ranging from 33 percent to 100 percent, with a majority of the areas reporting a loss of more than 80 percent, Karnataka’s estimates suggest.
Small and marginal farmers are the most affected, as about 83 percent of the land area under cultivation is covered under Small and Medium Farmholdings (SMF); hence, this land area is important to determine the input subsidy payable to the state, the Chief Minister’s letter stated.
Siddaramaiah, who met Shah in his office in the Parliament complex, said a central meeting of the high-level committee should be convened at the earliest to approve drought relief for Karnataka, an official statement said.
The Chief Minister informed in the meeting that the small and marginal farmers are more impacted because of the drought in 223 taluks out of 236 in the state. The crops sown in 48.19 lakh hectare of farmlands have been impacted.
Gowda said small and marginal farmers need immediate assistance and early release of funds will help in this regard.
The state government has also asked central ministers to consider the current data of farmers population while approving the drought relief, he added.
In a meeting with the Union Agriculture Minister, Gowda also requested the Union government to consider procurement of copra from farmers through cooperative NAFED amid a fall in prices.
Siddaramaiah also said that the state government had submitted a memorandum seeking ₹18,177.44 crore drought three months back and requested the Union government to expedite the matter.
While sanctioning the drought relief, the Chief Minister requested the Union government to consider the latest farmers’ population data instead of the 2015-16 data, the statement added.
The state government had submitted its memorandum on 22 September. Consequently, a central team visited the state in October and submitted a report.
Siddaramaiah had, on Tuesday, met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi and requested him to release drought relief funds at the earliest. He was accompanied by State Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda.
In his letter to the Prime Minister, Siddaramaiah stated that Karnataka has assessed the crop damage and is seeking an input subsidy of ₹4,663.12 crore from the National Disaster Response Funds (NDRF).
The first memorandum seeking relief of ₹4,860.13 crore was submitted to the Ministry of Agriculture on 22 September, 2023. The government of India thereafter deputed the Inter-ministerial Central Team (IMCT), which visited the state from 4 to 9 October, 2023.
Out of the 236 taluks in the state, 223 have been declared as drought-affected, as per the procedure laid down in the Drought Manual of 2020.
Out of them, 196 are severely affected. Subsequently, 21 more taluks were declared as severely affected by drought.
The supplementary memorandum was submitted to the Ministry of Agriculture on 20 October 2023, seeking ₹17,901.73 crore from the NDRF, which included a gratuitous relief claim of ₹12,577.86 crore.
Following the declaration of drought on 4 November 2023, in an additional seven taluks, another supplementary memorandum was submitted on 15 November, seeking a total claim of ₹18,177.44 crore of relief funds for the state, Siddaramiah’s letter stated.
Karnataka has a robust digital database of farmers under the system called FRUITS (Farmers Registration & Unified Beneficiary Identification System). This system is Aadhaar-enabled and is, therefore, reliable.
PM-Kisan uses the FRUITS identification number to make the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) payment in Karnataka.
Karnataka’s request is to consider the area under SMF holdings as per the Aadhaar-enabled FRUITS digital database and release the relief funds, Siddaramaiah’s letter stated.
The 2015-16 agriculture census shows that in Karnataka, 43.94 percent of the land area belongs to SMF holdings. However, as per the FRUITS database, 83 percent of the land is covered by holdings that belong to small and marginal farmers.
The Chief Minister urged Prime Minister Modi to direct a high-level committee under the Union Home Ministry to consider the quantum of the area under the SMF holdings as per the state’s FRUITS database.
(With PTI inputs)
