<p>Bengaluru: With Karnataka reeling under an acute water crisis due to a severe drought situation in most parts of the state, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday launched a fresh attack against the Centre for not releasing Rs 18,172 crore to face the challenge.</p><p>He charged that the Centre did not heed to the state government’s plea to increase the number of man-days under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) from 100 to 150.</p><p>Siddaramaiah also alleged that the union government did not release Rs 1,600 crore towards the payment of wages to those working under MGNREGS.</p>.Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar receive bomb threat over email.<p>"We gave the first memorandum to the Centre on October 20, 2023 to release Rs 18,172 crore for drought mitigation but till now the Centre did not give even a penny," the chief minister said.</p><p>He alleged that the BJP comes to fight with the Congress whenever the Karnataka government asks the Centre for funds.</p><p>"It is true that Karnataka did not get money. The BJP in Karnataka says there is a way to demand it. Hence, we asked them that let us go under your leadership, but they did not respond," Siddaramaiah said.</p><p>"Now JD(S) too has joined the BJP and former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy speaks like BJP’s spokesman that our approach is not proper," the chief minister said.</p><p>According to Siddaramaiah, 223 out of 236 Taluks of Karnataka are reeling under drought and among them 219 are badly affected.</p><p>The Karnataka ministers, Congress MLAs and MPs on February 7 staged a demonstration in Delhi against the injustice to Karnataka in releasing funds and giving its share of Central grants.</p>
<p>Bengaluru: With Karnataka reeling under an acute water crisis due to a severe drought situation in most parts of the state, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday launched a fresh attack against the Centre for not releasing Rs 18,172 crore to face the challenge.</p><p>He charged that the Centre did not heed to the state government’s plea to increase the number of man-days under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) from 100 to 150.</p><p>Siddaramaiah also alleged that the union government did not release Rs 1,600 crore towards the payment of wages to those working under MGNREGS.</p>.Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar receive bomb threat over email.<p>"We gave the first memorandum to the Centre on October 20, 2023 to release Rs 18,172 crore for drought mitigation but till now the Centre did not give even a penny," the chief minister said.</p><p>He alleged that the BJP comes to fight with the Congress whenever the Karnataka government asks the Centre for funds.</p><p>"It is true that Karnataka did not get money. The BJP in Karnataka says there is a way to demand it. Hence, we asked them that let us go under your leadership, but they did not respond," Siddaramaiah said.</p><p>"Now JD(S) too has joined the BJP and former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy speaks like BJP’s spokesman that our approach is not proper," the chief minister said.</p><p>According to Siddaramaiah, 223 out of 236 Taluks of Karnataka are reeling under drought and among them 219 are badly affected.</p><p>The Karnataka ministers, Congress MLAs and MPs on February 7 staged a demonstration in Delhi against the injustice to Karnataka in releasing funds and giving its share of Central grants.</p>