Minister says Cabinet has cleared proposal for cloud seeding in drought-hit areas

Minister N. Cheluvarayaswamy stated on Thursday that the State Cabinet has approved the proposal of cloud seeding in regions grappling with drought. This clearance came following a call for attention raised by Congress MLA N.H. Konareddy, who urged the government to implement cloud seeding in districts facing severe water and fodder scarcity due to inadequate rainfall.

Konareddy cited a successful experiment conducted by Haveri district legislators, which resulted in some precipitation. The minister acknowledged that the proposal for cloud seeding had already been deliberated upon and endorsed by the State Cabinet. The legislative session commenced with a discussion on the statewide drought, though the debate remained unresolved due to opposition BJP-JD(S) members' protests demanding the resignation of Planning and Statistics Minister B. Nagendra.

The ongoing session saw only Congress representatives participating, with Konareddy urging opposition members to join the debate. The opposition, including Konareddy, called upon the government to send a delegation to the center to request urgent drought aid for Karnataka. Opposition leaders demanded Nagendra's removal, citing his involvement in a chargesheet investigation, before they would participate in a constructive debate on drought relief.

Speaker R. Ashok emphasized the urgency of drought relief measures, alleging that despite prolonged dry spells, relief efforts were inadequate.