From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore

Bangalore, Oct 1: JD(S) leader and Leader of Opposition in the State Legislative Assembly H D Kumaraswamy has urged the State government to convene a special session of the State Legislature to discuss various burning issues including huge losses caused to agriculture and horticulture crops owing to excess rains and also drought in several districts of the State.

The JD(S) leader, who addressed a news conference in Bangalore on Tuesday, lambasted Chief Minister Siddaramaiah for not releasing the promised compensation to farmers.

The first installment of Rs 12,000 per hectare to each areca grower has not been released yet, he said pointing out the coconut, pomegranate and grape farmers were also facing the same fate.

The chief minister was merely making statements without actually releasing any money to mitigate the problems of agriculturists and trying to fool the people and farmers, he said.

Kumaraswamy said the people were disappointed with the speech of AICC President and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi delivered at Mandya on Monday for not announcing any special package to bail out farmers.

Laddoos, Namaskara in Kannada Not Enough

''Distribution of laddoos to the crowd and wishing the people of Karnataka for Dasara in Kannada by Ms Gandhi were all the sops that the ruling Congress party has given to the people of Karnataka,” he said and mentioned that the people of the State, especially the farmers of Mandya, cannot be fooled by such gimmicks.

The government machinery was being extensively used to bring people from different districts for the Mandya raly, he alleged.

''We were expecting that she (Ms Gandhi) may announce a special package to Karnataka but she did nothing except praising the Chief Minister for his 'governance' during the last five months,” the JD(S) leader said and wondered what was the ''special governance qualities” that the Congress boss noticed.

The UPA chairperson has claimed the credit for bringing the Food Security Act, he said asking if she realized the problems of poor after nine and a half years. The people knew what Congress Party has contributed in the last six decade, he said.

JD(S) to Chalk Out Campaign Against Govt

He said a meeting of JD(S) will be held in Bangalore on Wednesday to work out course of action against the Siddaramaiah government, which has not done anything to address the problems of farmers.

JD(S) National President H D Deve Gowda and State JD(S) President Krishnappa, who are on tour of Hyderabad-Karnataka, would participate in the Wednesday meeting.

It is a matter of shame that the State government did not present a detailed report on the losses caused to roads, bridges and agriculture crops due to heavy rains in some parts of the State.

The central team has asked to redraft the report and submit it to the Union Government.

The loss suffered due to drought and excess rains in the State was around Rs 5,000 crore and the Centre has not released any money yet. This was how the UPA Government was responding to problems of farmers in Karnataka, Kumaraswamy said.