GULBARGA: Representatives of trade and industry in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region have urged the Centre to release Rs. 600 crore as interim assistance to the State to take up flood relief operations in affected villages on the banks of the Krishna, Bhima, Ghataprabha and Tungabhadra.

A delegation from the Hyderabad Karnataka Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Bidar Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Raichur Chamber of Commerce and Industries which met Union Ministers on August 21 and 22 in New Delhi said in their memorandum that the magnitude of the floods had caused great loss to property and had damaged standing crops in Gulbarga, Raichur, Bidar, Bijapur, Bagalkot and Belgaum districts.

They said the Union Government should rise up to the occasion and sanction funds to the State.

President of the Hyderabad Karnataka Chamber of Commerce and Industry Umakant Nigudgi told The Hindu here on Saturday that although the Centre had announced a relief package of Rs. 400 and Rs. 250 crore to Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, respectively, it was yet to respond to the request made by the State Government to release funds to tackle the flood situation.

Mr. Nigudgi said a special relief package of Rs. 5,000 crore was needed to rehabilitate farmers in Karnataka.

The memorandum said in the last five years 5,910 farmers had committed suicide in Karnataka, followed by 1,835 in Andhra Pradesh, 981 in Maharashtra and 201 in Kerala.

Highways

Mr. Nigudgi said through another memorandum to the Union Minister of State for Transport K.H. Muniyappa that State highways should be developed into National Highways in the Hyderabad Karnataka region.

The inter-State highway linking Umarga in Maharashtra passing through Gulbarga and connecting Ribbanpalli in Andhra Pradesh should be upgraded as a National Highway, the memorandum added.

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