A Union report on rural indebtedness has just been re leased and the news, yet again, is not good for Bengalu ru. The Union Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (mospi.nic.in) cites a survey by the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) to re port that more than half of all agricultural households in India are in debt due to various borrowings. Karna taka is among the top five of the states - or bottom, if you would rather put it that way. Nearly 80 percent of the state's agricultural households are in debt to banks and moneylenders. We will soon see why this is bad news for Bengaluru.

The state government will likely point out that our The state government will likely point out that our neighbouring states report higher indebtedness among rural households, close to 90 percent in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, but that is really very cold comfort. The ministry's report, Situation Assessment Survey of Agricultural Households in India, is simply frightening. This survey of farm households, conducted between July 2012 and June 2013, reveals that Indian farm households manage an average monthly income of just `6,400. That is the total income of the family. And, if you are wondering what's happening with the MGNREGA scheme, the survey says only about two of five farm households had Aadhar card.There is nothing in the report to tell us if matters have improved since June last year. The report notes, ominously, "The reported lower rate of possession of MGNREGA job cards in lowest size class is noteworthy in the context of higher dependency of these households on wagesalaried employment."

The size of debt averages at about `90,000 per household in Karnataka. With only `6,400 per month as family earning, it is only likely that there will be increased distress migration to urban areas in the country. For Karnataka, this means Bengaluru, because there is hardly any other urban area in the state that guarantees employment in the service businesses such as factory, office and other security, cab and auto rickshaw transport, delivery and such. In fact, as we keep saying, there is no other city in the state with a critical population mass to drive economic growth outside of Bengaluru.

So, we should expect more stress on Bengaluru's infrastructure - its roads, water supply and land space. If the state's main political parties - Congress, BJP or JD (S) - have some notion of a plan for the future, it is a well-kept secret. The parties squabbled in the justconcluded session of the state legislature in Belagavi. It is not that the state administration is ignorant of the grim situation, the Chief Minister himself released another report earlier this month that indicated dark forebodings for Bengaluru.

The city, which has about a fifth of the state's population already, has more than two-thirds of the entire vehicular population, noted the report, titled 'Green Growth Strategy for Karnataka', a collaborative effort between Bangalore Climate Change Initiative-Karnataka (BCCI-K) and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), Seoul, South Korea. The city's air pollution is already above acceptable levels, it is running out of clean ground water, space for housing, transport corridors and green cover. The increased distress in rural Karnataka will make Bengaluru hellish in the years to come. We may yet have a coming generation nursing nostalgic thoughts about the mess it is now.

The same report also notes that agriculture in Karnataka is heavily dependent on ground water and free power for irrigation. One-third of the state's power is consumed by inefficient irrigation pump sets, but things get worse. The state doesn't have enough power to attract industrial investment, and the pumps have already sucked out precious ground water. The report notes that about one-fourth of the taluks in Karnataka have just about run out of ground water. The destruction of rain-harvesting contours, natural drains and channels, and pollution and encroachment of water bodies have impacted in expected ways. The report notes that more than four million hectares of crops were destroyed due to natural calamities in just five years, between 2006 and 2011. The report also voices concern about degradation of forests and natural habitats.

So, the state administration knows what is in store. It has many reports, recommendations and plans on paper. Nobody cares. And the political system in Karnataka continues to nurse the ridiculous belief that demonstrating concern for Bengaluru will be read by the rural electorate as 'elitist bias'. The state is now bereft of caring elders in the political parties, sadly short of capable leaders with vision and daring.All we are left with now is a set of caste and community partisans who just want to make it in the first-pastthe-post multi-party election game. They all slide by till the next round.

Bengaluru must fight for its own survival. Out civil society movements need to come together on a common platform to draft a course and pursue it to bring more pressure on the political system to save this city from sure disaster.