Govt to go ahead with formation of new taluks: Karnataka Minister

B D Narayankar reports

Bangalore, April 23 (PTI) Karnataka government has decided to go ahead with the proposal of the previous BJP regime on formation of new taluks, Revenue Minister V Srinivas Prasad said today. 

"We have not dropped the proposal made by the previousJagadish Shettar government on formation of new taluks. We will go ahead to form new taluks," he told reporters here. 

As the principal opposition, Congress had criticised the then BJP government's decision on carving out new taluks, terming it as part of the "election strategy" to woo the electorate during the May 2013 State Assembly elections. 

Government will also consider forming more new taluks apart from 43 new ones proposed by the Shettar government, Prasad said. 

"We have received several new proposals on carving out new taluks from the existing ones," he said. 

"The move is aimed at ensuring effective delivery of public services," he added. Karnataka has 220 taluks. 

Prasad however said before announcing new taluks the Siddaramaiah government wants to put in place basic facilities to taluk administration. 

Government would provide Rs 326 crore assistance to farmers for replanting horticultural crops hit by untimely rains and hailstorms early this month in the state, he said. 

"We have decided to give Rs 40,000 per hectare assistance to farmers, especially in Bagalkot and Bijapur areas, who have been hit by untimely rains and hailstorms. The amount is more than what the Maharashtra government has announced, Rs 25,000 per hectare," he said. 

Government would utilise the fund released from National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) to compensate farmers and others who had suffered crop and property loss, owing to hailstorm. 

The hailstorm had damaged rabi crops, including wheat, pulses, oilseeds and horticultural crops in over two lakh hectares in Yadagir, Gulbarga, Bijapur, Bagalkot, Raichur, Koppal, Tumkur and Chitradurga districts. 

Government had submitted a memorandum to a central study team, which toured the state in March and appealed to the Centre to calculate the financial assistance on the basis of the extent of loss, Prasad said.