Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday announced Rs 5 lakh in compensation for the relatives of a woman who died in a flood-related incident in Bengaluru. Shashikala, a 35-year-old housekeeping employee, died after the compound wall of the IT firm she worked at collapsed on her following heavy rain.
announced this as he and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar visited flood-hit regions in the evening. They will hold city rounds for the entire day on May 21 to visit the flood-hit areas, it was announced. Complaints will then be received from those who have been affected by the floods, Siddaramaiah said.
The flooding was caused by intense spells of rainfall over consecutive days.
The chief minister attributed the floods to encroachment of storm-water drains and the low depth of drains, coupled with silt formation. “The city corporation (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) was issued several directions to clear them. However, the work was still ongoing,” he said.
Noting that retaining walls were constructed for 491 km of the 859.9 km of storm-water drains in the city, Siddaramaiah said that work was in progress on 195 km. In addition, storm-water drains of 173 km are being constructed under a Rs 2,000-crore World Bank-funded project, he added.
In the city, 210 low-lying areas were identified as flood-prone. Of these, issues of 166 areas were addressed. With the completion of work in 44 more areas, flooding will be reduced, Siddaramaiah said.
