No drought, but Dakshina Kannada still gets aid

BANGALORE: Dakshina Kannada, Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda’s home district, is not declared drought-hit, but has still managed to get grants from the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) to tackle  scarcity-related work.According to official sources, the government has released about Rs 15 crore from the SDRF to deputy commissioners of four districts for relief work for the current fiscal year, including Rs 2 crore each to Dakshina Kannada and Bangalore Urban district, which has also not been declared drought-hit.The state government’s decision to release grants from the SDRF, overlooking the need of districts that are  declared severely drought-hit, is likely to invite the wrath of the Opposition at the all-party meet called by the Chief Minister on Thursday. Officials say funds have been allotted to these districts, though they are not drought-hit, to alleviate the drinking water problem.The government declared as many as 123 taluks in 24 districts as severely drought-hit areas and has released about Rs 98 crore from the SDRF to deputy commissioners for taking up relief work since November 2011.While the government has released about Rs 182.25 crore under the SDRF for 2011-12, it includes Rs 126.76 crore from the Central share and another Rs 56 crore from its own resources. It has also sanctioned another Rs 15 crore for 2012-13.The government has also released Rs 3 crore each to Dharwad and Chikmagalur and Rs 5 crore to Chikballapur to meet drinking water needs of the people.Considering the dry spell in most parts of the state, the land revenue assessment for 2011-12 has been waived.