Gadag MLA H.K. Patil Threatens to Resign Over Drought Declaration Delay

Gadag MLA H.K. Patil has said he will resign from the Legislative Assembly if Gadag taluk is not declared drought-hit by October 10. Addressing a farmers' protest in Mulgund, Gadag district, on Sunday, the former Minister demanded that the taluk be added to the list of drought-affected areas.

Patil questioned why Gadag taluk had been left out despite a 49% rainfall deficit, and sought an explanation from the government for the omission. He said he would press for the declaration at the government level and try to secure it within three days, failing which he would treat October 10 as the deadline. If the declaration does not come by then, he said, he will step down as an MLA.

Stating that he comes from a farming family, Patil said he understood the difficulties farmers face. He urged the government to declare the other severely affected taluks, including Gadag, drought-hit and to provide relief. He noted that 27 of the 73 taluks in North Karnataka have been excluded from the list of drought-affected taluks.

According to Patil, a meeting of officials was held under the leadership of the district in-charge Minister and local MLAs to discuss the drought situation. Following the officials' report, Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar visited Gadag district to assess crop damage. Despite these developments, the failure to declare Gadag taluk drought-hit has caused dissatisfaction among farmers, he said.

Earlier, farmers took out a procession from the Ganesh Temple in Mulgund town to Basapura Cross and later blocked the Gadag-Lakshmeshwar State Highway to express their anger against the State government.