On the day that half of Karnataka went to the polls, the Union government greenlit a relief package of Rs 3,454 crore under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) for drought relief. This decision comes on the heels of discussions between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi. A statement from the Ministry of Finance on April 26 said that a high-powered committee chaired by Home Minister Amit Shah has approved the release of funds for drought relief for the kharif 2023 season.
The state initially requested Rs 18,174 crore in September 2023 under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF). This request included Rs 5,662 crore for compensating farmers who suffered crop losses due to inadequate rainfall.
The delay in disbursing funds triggered tensions between the Union and Karnataka's Congress-led government, with the state government accusing the Union of neglect and a lack of quick assistance. While Karnataka argued for urgent aid, the Union countered, suggesting that the State Disaster Relief Fund had sufficient resources to carry out relief efforts on their own.
In response, the Karnataka government approached the Supreme Court, seeking intervention. During court proceedings, the Union government said that the Election Commission had approved fulfilling the state's request for financial assistance for drought management. Following the Supreme Court's involvement, the Union government agreed to release the sanctioned drought relief package.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said the Union government released the funds only because the Supreme Court had taken them to task and the Union government had assured them of releasing the funds in a week’s time. “According to NDRF guidelines, they had to release Rs 18,171 crore, but they have released only Rs 3,454 crore. This is not enough for drought relief. We will continue our fight for release of the rest of the money,” he said.
Siddaramaiah had earlier said that the state had released Rs 2,000 to more than 33 lakh farmers incurring a cost of Rs 650 crore. The state had, last October, declared 223 taluks out of 240 as drought-hit. The state contended in the Supreme Court that an inter-ministerial central team had visited in October to assess the situation and submitted a report to the Union government, but no decision was taken by the Union government which should have decided within a month of the report being submitted.
North Karnataka and parts of central Karnataka totalling 14 Parliamentary constituencies, will go to polls on May 7.
Besides Karnataka, Tamil Nadu also received compensation of Rs 275 crore from the Union government to address damages from cyclones and floods in December.