Karnataka Appeals to Supreme Court for Release of Rs 35,162 Cr Drought Relief Funds

NEW DELHI: The Karnataka government has filed a plea in the Supreme Court to direct the Centre to release Rs 35,162 Cr for drought relief as the state is facing "grave humanitarian distress" and "calamity of severe nature".

The Congress government claimed there was an inordinate delay by the MHA in convening high level committee meeting to approve the quantum of relief from NDRF.

The Centre has not convened the high level committee to take action on the sub committee of the national executive committee’s report on the memorandums submitted by the state government seeking financial assistance, which has impaired the fundamental right to life of the people of the state, it said.

"Our Constitution makes it imperative for the State to secure to all its citizens the rights guaranteed by the Constitution and where the citizens are not able to assert and secure their rights, the State must come into picture and protect and fight for the rights of the citizens," it said.

The Union government's Ministry of Home Affairs has failed to take a final decision and release the financial assistance from National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) to the state for drought relief even as six months have lapsed since filing of a report by the Inter-Ministerial Central Team (IMCT).

"Agriculture is a primary source of livelihood for a large section of state. The present drought situation has damaged crops and affected livestock, leading to lower yields, reduced income for farmers, and increased food prices. The situation has major economic impact resulting from losses in agriculture, impacting jobs, incomes, and overall economic growth of the State," it said.

The plea filed by advocate D L Chidananda contended the Centre's action in not releasing the financial assistance for drought arrangement as per the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) is ex-facie illegal, arbitrary and violative of fundamental rights guaranteed to its citizens under Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution.

The state government called the Centre's actions as arbitrary in denying financial assistance for drought management to it under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 and the Manual for Drought Management updated in 2020 in terms of the directions issued by the Supreme Court in 'Swaraj Abhiyan Vs Union of India' (2016).

Under the manual for drought management, the central government is required to take a final decision on the assistance to the State from the NDRF within a month of the receipt of the Inter-Ministerial Central Team (IMCT), it said.

"In the present case the memorandums were submitted in September, October, and November 2023 and the IMCT visited various drought affected districts from October, 4 to 9, 2023 and made a comprehensive assessment of drought situation in the state," it said.

The state government said Karnataka is reeling under severe drought, affecting the lives of its people.

It said for the Kharif 2023 season (the season starts in June and ends in September), a total of 223 out of 236 taluks are declared as drought-affected, with 196 taluks categorised as severely affected and the remaining 27 categorised as moderately affected.

The plea said deficit rainfall coupled with above normal temperature severely affected the standing crops in large part of rainfed areas. During the South West Monsoon season 2023, the State recorded only 33 rainy days out of 122 days, which is the 2nd lowest in the last 33 years.

"Cumulatively for Kharif 2023 season, the agriculture and horticulture crop loss have been reported in more than 48 lakh hectares with the estimated loss (cost of cultivation) of Rs 35,162 crore," it said.