Overview
- Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar sent a six‑page letter dated November 4 to Prime Minister Narendra Modi formally requesting a special financial package for Bengaluru and expedited release of drought relief funds.
- The letter demands Centre intervention on sugarcane economics, asking for a revised minimum selling price for sugar, restoration of the FRP base recovery to 9.5%, and a review of the October 22 ethanol directive that left cane‑based ethanol prices unchanged.
- Shivakumar asked the Union to fast‑track clearances and funding for major irrigation projects named in the letter — Mekedatu, Kalasa‑Banduri, Upper Bhadra, Upper Krishna and Yettinahole — to bolster drinking water and irrigation capacity across the state.
- He highlighted severe drought conditions, reporting 226 of 240 taluks declared drought‑affected, a 35% monsoon shortfall with 551 mm versus a normal 852 mm, and roughly 11.97 lakh hectares left unsown, stressing urgent water supply measures such as pending Jal Jeevan Mission releases.
- The appeal ties near‑term relief to longer‑term plans by seeking Centre co‑funding for an AI university in Bengaluru and an AIIMS in Raichur, and it seeks a PM meeting for an all‑party Karnataka delegation during the prime minister’s planned visit to inaugurate Bengaluru’s Pink Line.