Belagavi, 7 July

Karnataka Public Works Minister Satish Jarkiholi on Tuesday said the cloud seeding experiment carried out in Haveri district appears to have been successful, with residents reporting good rainfall after the exercise.

Speaking to reporters in Belagavi, Jarkiholi said he would urge Chief Minister DK Shivakumar to consider extending the initiative to other parts of Karnataka.

Ranebennur MLA Prakash Koliwad, who led the cloud seeding initiative, said it is estimated to cost around Rs 15 lakh per hour. MLAs from the region on Monday said it would be carried out for three days continuously.

The aircraft used in the operation will then remain stationed in Hubballi for a month, and cloud seeding will be undertaken when scientists determine that weather conditions and moisture levels are favourable.

This comes as Karnataka is grappling with a massive rain deficit that has hit 129 taluks across 17 districts, according to a Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC) report using data as of 6 July.

Vijayanagar districthas recorded the most severe rainfall deficit, representing a 61 per cent shortfall. However, compared to the previous week, the number of districts receiving normal rainfall has increased, with conditions returning to normal in 13 districts.

Meanwhile, heavy rain continued to batter Belagavi district for the fourth consecutive day on Tuesday as incessant showers across neighbouring Maharashtra swelled the Krishna, Ghataprabha and Malaprabha rivers, inundating low-lying bridges and disrupting road connectivity in parts of the district.

Official data showed that the Krishna River was receiving around 1.07 lakh cusecs of inflow on Tuesday morning.

Heavy rainfall in the Sawantwadi forestregion of Maharashtra also led to a sharp increase in inflows into the Ghataprabha River. The Hidkal reservoir, with a full reservoir level of 2,175 ft, was storing water up to 2,103 ft.

However, regions like Kalaburagi have not received water despite the presence of clouds. The drought has also triggered large-scale migration from Kudligi taluk in Vijayanagara district, where rain-fed agriculture is the primary source of livelihood.