Rainfall wreaks havoc in northern Karnataka, Bommai visits Haveri district
The flood waters have submerged about 40 houses in Haveri district while the floods have swept away infrastructure, including a bridge in Davanagere district
Continuous heavy rainfall across northern Karnataka for past one week have left about 40 houses submerged in Haveri district, and damaged state’s infrastructure, including a bridge in Davanagere district, officials familiar with the matter said on Monday. Heavy rains have also kept students away from examination centres.
An official said that the floodwaters have submerged around 30 to 40 houses in Baraduru village in Savanooru taluk of Haveri district. The villagers, who had submitted several memorandums to deputy commissioner Vijay Mahantesh on the matter since past six-seven months, blamed administrative negligence for the flooding and accusing officials of failing to maintain proper drainage systems.
Former chief minister Basavaraj Bommai, who represents the Haveri parliamentary constituency, visited the area on Monday but faced criticism from angry residents. Villagers refused to relocate to temporary shelters, demanding permanent housing solutions instead. “We don’t want to move every monsoon. Provide us with permanent shelters,” residents urged Bommai.
An official from the Haveri agriculture department, on condition of anonymity, confirmed the extent of the damage. “It’s not just hundreds but thousands of hectares of crops that have been lost. The financial loss runs into several crores,” the official said. Desai urged the government to provide adequate compensation to affected farmers.
Haveri deputy commissioner Vijay Mahantesh told media that the district administration has setup a few relief centres to the flood affected where all the requirements would be provided. “The administration has already readied three rehabilitation centres in the district which can facilitate more than 500 people,” he said.
In response, Bommai assured affected families of permanent housing solutions and promised financial aid for both crop and property damage.
“Compensation will be provided through both state and union government support,” he said.
In Davanagere, a bridge in Mandaluru village that connected around 12 nearby villages, including routes toward Chitradurga, was completely washed away on Sunday night. “We had informed the authorities several times about the deteriorating condition of the bridge, but no action was taken,” said Manjunath Swamy, a resident of Gollaratty village. “If the weak areas of the bridge had been repaired on time, it could have survived the floods.”
The collapsed bridge has led to severe accessibility challenges. Two residents of Mandaluru requiring urgent medical care could not reach the hospital in time as ambulances were blocked by the floodwaters. “When our neighbour needed emergency treatment, my husband called the ambulance, but it couldn’t reach us because of the submerged roads,” said Patvati Gowda, a homemaker from Gollaratty.
The floods also disrupted the ongoing II Pre-University (PU) mid-term exams. Students from Haveri, Koppal, Davanagere, and Gadag districts were unable to attend the first day of examinations on Monday due to flooded roads and the lack of transportation. “My daughter missed her exam because there was no way to reach her college in Davanagere,” said Mallangouda Patil, a parent from Mandaluru.
Farmers across northern Karnataka have suffered heavy losses, with standing crops destroyed in hundreds of hectares due to the relentless rain and flooding. Appasaheb Desai, president of Karnataka Rajya Raita Sangha mattu Hadiru Sene, said: “The floods have wiped out our efforts and investments by damaging crops like groundnuts and other staples.”