Bengaluru, Nov 27 (NationPress) - In a decisive move to alleviate the hardships faced by farmers following significant crop damage due to torrential monsoon rains, the Congress-led government of Karnataka has released an emergency input subsidy of ₹1,033.60 crore in a single day.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah spearheaded the transfer of this critical compensation to the bank accounts of 14.24 lakh farmers impacted by the adverse weather conditions.

CM Siddaramaiah initiated the subsidy transfer directly from his residence, known as 'Krishna'. During a press briefing, he announced this special financial package aimed at supporting farmers whose crops were severely affected by heavy rains and floods during the recent monsoon season.

He emphasized that the government stands in solidarity with farmers and has enhanced the rates of input subsidies. For rainfed crops, the subsidy will now range from ₹8,500 to ₹17,000 per hectare, for irrigated crops from ₹17,000 to ₹25,500 per hectare, and for perennial crops from ₹22,500 to ₹31,000 per hectare, capped at a maximum of two hectares.

According to the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) guidelines, ₹1,218.03 crore has already been allocated as input subsidy to the same number of farmers. With the additional ₹1,033.60 crore top-up, a total of ₹2,251.63 crore will be channeled into farmers' accounts.

“This monsoon, a record 82.56 lakh hectares were cultivated. However, unrelenting rainfall from June to September resulted in crop losses across over 14.58 lakh hectares, leading to an estimated economic loss of ₹10,748 crore. Significant losses were reported in tur dal, green gram, cotton, and maize,” stated CM Siddaramaiah.

“Nine districts were particularly hard hit, with crops in Dharwad, Gadag, and Haveri facing severe damage just before harvest,” he added.

In areas surrounding the Krishna and Bhima rivers, continuous water inflow caused widespread destruction of tur and cotton crops in Kalaburagi, Yadgir, and Bidar. A comprehensive survey was conducted to assess the extent of the crop loss, and all findings have been recorded in the relief software integrated with the Bhoomi and FRUITS systems.

Village-level reports detailing crop losses were made available at local panchayat offices and online. The public was invited to contest these findings, and after finalizing the list of affected farmers, the direct transfer of subsidies commenced.

On November 17, CM Siddaramaiah met with the Prime Minister, seeking ₹614.90 crore for input subsidies and an additional ₹1,521.67 crore for post-disaster recovery efforts. The central government is also dispatching an inter-ministerial team to evaluate the crop losses in Karnataka shortly, as stated by the CM.