BELAGAVI: Sweltering Belagavi recorded the highest temperature among all the districts of Karnataka, as the mercury soared to 44.10 degrees Celsius at Chigateri village of Gokak taluk in the last 24 hours till 8 am on Tuesday, according to the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC) .
The heat wave in Belagavi continues to torment the people, with temperatures fluctuating from 39 to 40 degrees Celsius and above at several places in the district. According to environmentalists, deforestation and fast urbanisation have made Belagavi one of the hottest places in the state this year. The scorching weather seems to be showering fire in Belagavi, they said.
Dearth of rain last year and the unbearable heat wave this year is proving to be a curse. The ground water level has drastically dropped at several places leaving people thirsty and helpless.
The district administration has started supplying drinking water through tankers to 106 villages, deploying 161 tankers.
According to doctors, a person requires a minimum of about 40 to 50 litres of water per day of which a minimum of 5 litres is for drinking and the rest for washing and other purposes. But, in the drought hit areas in the district supplied water through tankers, each person hardly gets 20 litres. This is not hygienic and is a health hazard, they said.
According to senior citizens here, Belagavi called the ‘Mahabaleshwar of the poor’ due to its cool pleasant weather and affordable stay, is now totally changed. This was the same district which once attracted a huge number of visitors during summer vacations. The drinking water shortage is forcing several locals to migrate, they said.
Month’s Salary for relief
BJP MLAs, MLCs and MPs from the state have decided to donate their one month’s salary to the Drought Relief Fund. Announcing the decision, BJP state president B S Yeddyurappa has said the plight of farmers is heart-wrenching and it is the duty of everyone to mitigate their sufferings. He demanded the state government to take up drought relief works on a war-footing.
