Leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said climate change had been causing excess rainfall and extensive damage to agricultural/horticultural crops and public properties in Karnataka, and the State government did not take action on the report on climate change prepared by the Environmental Management and Policy Research Institute (EMPRI), the nodal agency of the government.
The Karnataka State Action Plan on Climate Change (2021) prepared by EMPRI predicted climate change and change in rainfall patterns in the State. But the government slept on the report without initiating any action, he said initiating a debate on the rain havoc.
Quoting the report findings, Mr. Siddaramaiah said climate change experts predicted a fall in productivity of paddy by 5.6%, ragi by 12%, groundnut by 19%, and soybean by 28.6% while growth in output of cotton by 55%, maize by 24.5%, and sugarcane by 6.1%.
He said drought-prone areas such as Tumakuru, Ramanagaram, and Kolar received twice the normal rainfall. While Ramanagaram received 1,090 mm as against the normal of 465 mm as of September 6. Similarly, Tumakuru received 1,004 mm rainfall as against the normal of 350 mm.
The Karnataka State Action Plan on Climate Change estimated the annual budget requirement for climate change action plan of the State at ₹20,880 crore in 2025 and ₹52,827 crore in 2030.
