Rs 1,782 cr grant to drought-hit Karnataka, Rs 209 cr to Uttarakhand

Karnataka has been facing severe drought for past six years

The Centre today approved a grant of about Rs 1,782 crore to drought-affected Karnataka and Rs 209 crore to Uttarakhand which had been hit by floods in 2013 under the National Disaster Relief Fund.

The decision was taken during a meeting of the High Level Committee chaired by Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

The Committee examined the proposal based on the reports of the Inter-Ministerial Central Team (IMCT) which visited the states.

"The HLC approved the assistance from the National Disaster Relief Fund (NDRF) and National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP) in respect of Uttarakhand to the tune of Rs 208.91 crore (Rs 188.91 cr + Rs 20 cr). The HLC also approved an amount of Rs 1782.44 crore from the National Disaster Relief Fund in respect of Karnataka," a release issued by Home Ministry said.

Vice Chairman, NITI Aayog, Arvind Panagariya, Home Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi and senior officers of the Ministries of Home Affairs, Finance and Agriculture attended the meeting.

The Karnataka government had sought a central relief of Rs 4,702 crore for loss of 2016 kharif crops because of severe drought in the state.

The state has been facing severe drought for the past six years. The drought in 2016-17 was the worst in 40 years. It has declared 139 taluks out of 176 drought-hit.