The Hindu : New Delhi News : Deve Gowda, Moily see laxity in flood-relief work

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Wednesday, Oct 28, 2009
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Deve Gowda, Moily see laxity in flood-relief work

J. Balaji

‘There is no coordination between Yeddyurappa, Ministers’

M. Veerappa Moily

H.D. Deve Gowda

NEW DELHI: Former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda and Union Minister for Law and Justice M. Veerappa Moily have charged Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa with showing laxity in carrying out relief and rehabilitation measures in the flood-affected areas. He should announce the quantum of assistance he received from the Centre and how much had been spent, they demanded.

Instead of criticising the Janata Dal (Secular) and the Congress of not cooperating with the Government, and always being out of Bangalore on tour, the Chief Minister should sit at the Secretariat and monitor relief works constantly, on a day-to-day basis, said Mr. Deve Gowda and Mr. Moily at separate press conferences here on Tuesday.

Mr. Deve Gowda, who is also the president of the Janata Dal (Secular), said there was no “coordination or cooperation” in the relief works carried out by Mr. Yeddyurappa and his Cabinet colleagues, and there was “total lack of spirit”. He said his party was not informed when Mr. Yeddyurappa took an all-party delegation to Delhi to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for seeking Central assistance. He said the JD(S) did not want to indulge in petty politics and, in fact, had taken up the onus of getting assistance for the State.

Mr. Deve Gowda said he even spoke to Mr. Manmohan Singh and urged him to deal with the flood situation on an urgent basis and provide early assistance to the State. He added that his sons, former Chief Minister H.D. Kumarasamy and Leader of the JD(S) in the Assembly H.D. Revanna, toured the affected areas to console the victims and even collected donations for flood relief.

Mr. Moily said he was not at all satisfied with the pace of relief works. Though the Union Ministers from the State were ready to help the Karnataka Government, the latter was not forthcoming with the details. “I had even asked them to send me a copy of their communication to the Centre on the assistance required on various fronts, and promised to take it up with the ministry concerned and speed up release. But they have not cared to send even a single letter to me so far,” he said.

Money was not a problem and there were funds under various heads which could be utilised. The Karnataka Government should tighten its belt and swing into action and take up relief works quickly, instead of blaming the Congress, he added.

Mr. Moily, who is a Congress MP from Chickaballapur, said the State Government had closed gruel centres in relief camps in many areas and assistance was not reaching the affected at many places.

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