Hassan: All eight taluks have been declared drought-hit in three phases, but farmers have yet to receive any compensation from the state govt.Despite its proximity to the Western Ghats, the district is facing severe drought due to deficient rainfall this year, resulting in extensive crop losses.
Hassan district in-charge minister K M Shivalingegowda and DC Latha Kumari explain the drought conditions to the Central team at a village in Arasikere taluk on Sunday
Hassan, Holenarasipur, Channarayapatna, Arasikere and Arkalgud taluks were declared drought-affected first. Alur and Belur were added later, followed by Sakleshpur.According to the agriculture department, crops across 2,71,260 hectares have been damaged, including 1,72,973 hectares of agricultural crops and 98,287 hectares of horticultural crops. The district administration has submitted a proposal seeking approximately Rs 375 crore in compensation under state disaster response force (SDRF) guidelines.
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Joint director of agriculture P Ramesh Kumar said Arasikere recorded crop losses worth Rs 109 crore, followed by Channarayapatna at Rs 101 crore. Compensation will be distributed once govt releases funds.Against a sowing target of 2,86,186 hectares, only 1,73,409 hectares were cultivated due to rainfall shortages. Maize cultivation, targeted across 1.1 lakh hectares, suffered severe damage, with white spiral disease affecting nearly 76% of the crop. Ragi cultivation was also affected.Paddy fields remained uncultivated due to the non-release of irrigation water from Hemavathi, Yagachi and Vatehole reservoirs.A central drought assessment team visited the district on Oct 3 and 4 to inspect crop damage.Meanwhile, 2,10,494 farmers have registered under the Fasal Bima Yojana, but eligible farmers are still awaiting payments.
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