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Heavy rain continues across Karnataka, coastal areas worst hit
Between June 1 and July 17, the state has received 450.20 mm of rainfall as against the normal of 347.60 mm, registering a deviation of nearly 30% additional rains that have caused widespread damage to life and property across the state.
Heavy downpour continued in several parts of Karnataka on Sunday as Alur gram panchayat in Udupi, about 400 km from Bengaluru, recorded over 147.80 mm, throwing life out of gear in coastal districts and other parts of the state.
Between June 1 and July 17, the state has received 450.20 mm of rainfall as against the normal of 347.60 mm, registering a deviation of nearly 30% additional rains that have caused widespread damage to life and property across the state.
“Widespread moderate to heavy rains likely over coastal Karnataka districts and scattered to widespread very light to moderate rains with isolated heavy rains likely over Malnad and parts of NIK (north interior Karnataka) districts and isolated to scattered very light to moderate rains likely over SIK (south interior Karnataka) districts,” according to the MeT office forecast for Monday.
Bengaluru, Karnataka’s growth centre that houses over 12 million of the state’s total estimated 70 million population, has also been at the receiving end of heavy downpours, adding challenges like waterlogging, destruction of property and cars in basements, loss of livelihoods among others.
“Generally cloudy sky. One or two spells of light rain are very likely. Surface wind is likely to be strong and gusty at times. Maximum and Minimum temperatures very likely to be around 28 and 20 degrees Celsius, respectively,” the MeT department said in its forecast for the next 24 hours that could very well extend till about 48 hours.
On Saturday, Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai said most of the ministers have visited flood affected regions of the state.
“Reports have been received from Bidar, Belagavi and Raichur districts. Necessary orders have been issued. Officials have been instructed to shift the people living along the river banks to safer places in case of water release from the reservoirs. An immediate compensation of ₹10,000 is being paid in case of house collapses. A compensation of ₹5 lakh, ₹3 lakh and ₹50,000 is being paid depending on the extent of damage to the houses. Restoration of infrastructure like roads, bridges and power lines is being undertaken with a grant of ₹500 crore,” Bommai said on Saturday.
Even as rains continue across Karnataka, most of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislators are holed up in Bengaluru at a luxury hotel ahead of the Presidential election on Monday.
The Presidential election is scheduled to be held on Monday and the BJP is taking no chances with its legislators being scattered across the state during the polls.
“I was in Chikmagalur and our district in charge minister made an order on Friday. We went to Mudigere and other places affected by heavy rains, took meetings, reviewed the damage and gave out relief, issued compensatory cheques. Not just the chief minister who took review meetings but all district in charge ministers have been taking stock of the situation,” CT Ravi, BJPs national general secretary and legislator from Chikmagalur, said on Sunday.
He said it was the BJP government in Karnataka that was giving more than ₹4 lakhs on its own for reconstruction of houses as against the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) guidelines of ₹91,000.
