Bengaluru: Three central teams will visit the state from Oct 3 to assess the drought situation and verify ground realities before the state submits a fresh memorandum seeking relief, deputy CM and revenue minister G Parameshwara said Monday.Karnataka has declared 217 of its 240 taluks as drought-affected. Parameshwara said the central teams will interact with deputy commissioners and local officials and examine whether there is a gap between the state assessment and ground conditions. They will also assess crop losses and water scarcity on the ground.The teams will cover Tumakuru, Chitradurga and Davanagere, north Karnataka and the Mysuru region. “The state govt has already submitted a memorandum to the Centre, based on which teams will carry out their assessment,” Parameshwara said. “After the assessment, central teams will submit their reports. The state will also submit another memorandum.”He said the teams will follow their own guidelines. “Taluks have been declared drought-affected based strictly on prescribed criteria. Taluks that did not fall within the guidelines were omitted. Therefore, there is unlikely to be any major difference between the state govt’s report and the findings of the central teams,” Parameshwara said.The final memorandum will be submitted in the first week of Oct after further ground truthing. It will detail crop losses and relief sought from the Centre.Meanwhile, chief minister DK Shivakumar criticised BJP for declining to join the proposed all-party delegation to Delhi. “If they are not joining, it means that they are not interested in farmers,” he said. “They know they cannot speak to their party brass. They don’t have a face. For them, everything about farmers of this state is just lies and drama. They keep saying ‘give this much and that much’ to farmers. I’ve already said that if they get it done (central assistance), we will also give. So, they should come and get it done.”Parameshwara also urged BJP to join the delegation. “Natural disasters do not distinguish between parties,” he said. “The CM has proposed an all-party delegation so everyone can jointly represent Karnataka and seek greater assistance from the Union govt,” he said.On the Kasturirangan report, Shivakumar said, “I will seek time from officials, Union ministers and the Prime Minister. I will do whatever is required to convey my representation to them.”On Kasturirangan report, Shivakumar said, “I will seek time from officials, Union ministers and the Prime Minister. I will do whatever is required to convey my representation to them.”
