Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah thanked the Supreme Court on Friday for ordering the release of over Rs 34 lakh drought relief assistance from the Union Government for the 2023 Karnataka drought.
He added that it was perhaps the first time in the history of India that a state was driven to the Supreme Court to get its rights enforced.
“After persistent efforts and an appeal to the Supreme Court, we’ve secured Rs 3,498.82 crore in drought relief from the Union Government. I wish to thank the Hon. Supreme Court. This is perhaps the first time in the history of India that a state was driven to the Supreme Court to get its rights enforced. It’s regrettable that we had to wait since September 2023 for a response,” Siddaramaiah said in a post on X.
The Karnataka Chief Minister, however, expressed dissatisfaction with the monetary assistance, stating that the Karnataka government had requested Rs. 18,000 crore but received only Rs. 3,498.98 crore.
“The office of the Home Minister finally woke up after the Hon. Supreme Court rang the bell. Finally, some justice has been done to our farmers. However, the sanction is woefully inadequate. We had asked for Rs 18,000 crores and we have got 3498.98 crores!” Siddaramaiah added in the post.
The Ministry of Finance on Friday approved the release of Rs 345422 crore towards relief assistance for the 2023 Karnataka drought.
Earlier, the Karnataka government, in the plea filed through advocate DL Chidananda, urged the Supreme court to direct the Centre to forthwith take a final decision and release the financial assistance from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) to the state.