Bommai Seeks Overhaul of Karnataka Crop-Loss Survey
According to him, officials from the Agriculture, Revenue and Statistics Departments submitted reports without conducting thorough inspections.
Haveri: Haveri MP and former chief minister Basavaraj Bommai has called for an urgent overhaul of Karnataka’s crop-loss assessment system, alleging that flawed government surveys have severely underreported the extent of agricultural damage caused by heavy rains over the past two years.
“Farmers have suffered losses for two consecutive years, with crops such as maize, soybean, green gram and onion being destroyed. Yet no compensation was provided last year,” Bommai said.
He added that although the Chief Minister recently submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking relief, the ground-level crop surveys were “neither proper nor fair.”
According to him, officials from the Agriculture, Revenue and Statistics Departments submitted reports without conducting thorough inspections. “Several taluks claim only 10 per cent of the sown area was damaged, which is far from the truth. Some reports even state there was no damage at all, which is factually incorrect,” he said, citing Mundaragi taluk in Gadag district as an example.
Bommai demanded immediate correction of such discrepancies and swift compensation for all affected farmers.
He also raised concerns over the crash in maize prices. “Maize is grown on nearly 17 lakh hectares. The state produced 54 lakh metric tonnes last year, and similar output is expected this year. But prices have fallen to ₹1,600 per quintal, against the MSP of ₹2,400,” he noted. Farmers across districts are now demanding an additional ₹500 per quintal from the State Government, he said.
Bommai urged the Chief Minister to quickly authorise maize procurement, as was done previously, to prevent crop spoilage. “The stock can be sold later when prices increase, and the report can then be sent to the Centre,” he added.