Bangalore, July 02: Karnataka cabinet today expressed "dissatisfaction" over an additional allocation of "mere" 55,000 tonnes of foodgrains to the state by the Centre for drought relief works, against three lakh tonnes sought by it. "The cabinet has expressed its dissatisfaction. The government will decide the next step", information minister Allum Veerabhadrappa told reporters in his first briefing after becoming the minister.

State revenue minister H C Srikantaiah would proceed to Delhi soon to take up the matter with the Centre, he said.

Karnataka, which had earlier received 6.65 lakh tonnes of foodgrains for food for work programme, had sought an additional three lakh tonnes from the Centre which, on Monday, announced 55,000 tonnes. Veerabhadrappa said the cabinet which reviewed the drought situation decided to depute the revenue minister and home minister Mallikarjun Kharge, who is heading the cabinet sub-committee on drought, to review the situation at the district level from July 4 to 7.

The district in charge ministers had also been told to visit all the talukas, he said.

Veerabhadrappa said it was also decided to procure fodder from Haryana and Punjab to save the cattle and not to collect tax on cattle feed for three months. Bureau Report