Criticising Deputy Chief Minister and Kalaburagi in-charge Govind M. Karjol over handling the flood situation in the district, Congress leaders Sharan Prakash Patil, B.R. Patil, Allam Prabhu, and Jagadev Guttedar said that the in-charge Minister was insensitive to people’s sorrows and sufferings.
“Kalaburagi district is witnessing the worst rainy season and floods in the last 50 years. Large tracts of land with standing crops are submerged and thousands of houses have collapsed. With the submergence of several bridges, connectivity between villages and towns has remained cut off for days. Several tanks have breached flooding downstream fields and villages. With the loss of crops, farmers are staring at a difficult future. Rivers and streams are overflowing posing threats to villages along their courses. No officer is reachable and no Minister is approachable. The Deputy Chief Minister [Mr. Govind Karjol], who is the in-charge of Kalaburagi and who is supposed to stand by people when they are in distress, is nowhere to be seen in the district. We have to lodge a missing complaint. Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa should take note of Mr. Karjol’s failure in addressing flood-related issues and replace him as Kalaburagi district in-charge,” Mr. B.R. Patil said. The Congress leaders were addressing a media conference here on Thursday. Criticising the State government for its handling natural calamities, Mr. Sharan Prakash Patil said that he had no hopes that the BJP government in the State would help the flood-hit people in the district.
“The BJP has always been very insensitive to people’s problems. It never comes forward to help people when they are in trouble. It is very much evident in the way the BJP government has handled the flood situation in Belagavi and other parts in the Mumbai Karnataka region. It is again showing the same disinterest and insensitivity in the case of floods in Kalaburagi. As much as 75 % of crops were destroyed in the rain that lashed the district a few days ago. Now, the remaining 25 % of the crops are destroyed in the rain that is lashing the district now. Yet, neither Mr. Karjol visited the district nor any BJP MLA did anything to help the people in trouble,” Mr. Sharan Prakash Patil said.
The Congress leaders also appealed to Mr. Yediyurappa to conduct an aerial survey in the flood-hit regions along with the Union government’s team and take steps to pay compensation to the victims. “Kalaburagi district has only one NDRF team and it is not able to handle the flood situation on its own. We, the Congress, are ready to assist and help the government in handling the flood situation. But, the government need to take the initiative,” they said.
