Karnataka Government announces 10K per ha compensation to toor farmers

Bengaluru: The three north-eastern districts of Kalyana Karnataka had recently witnessed pest attacks on toor dal crops. The State Government has announced a financial aid of Rs. 10,000 per hectare to farmers who had to endure the loss of crops. Bidar, Kalaburagi and Yadgiri are the three districts which were affected. Yadgiri is known as the 'Dal Bowl of the State' while Kalaburagi is also known for its rich toor dal harvests. According to experts, there were unexpected rains in the region followed by unfavourable weather conditions after November. Due to the weather conditions in these districts, the toor crops were infested by pests.

Statistics suggest that 0.145 lakh hectares in Bidar, 1.98 lakh hectares in Kalaburagi, and 0.102 lakh hectares in Yadgiri have faced the brunt of crop losses. Thus leading to a total of 2.227 lakh hectares of lost produce.

A meeting was conducted by the State Government with senior officials of the respective departments. This meeting was held on Tuesday in the presence of Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and the decision was made to compensate the farmers. According to the decision, a compensation of Rs. 10,000 per hectare was announced. However, a limit of two hectares is also considered as per certain guidelines.