Bengaluru, Oct. 23 -- Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking immediate central assistance of Rs 20,585.73 crore under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), citing estimated losses of Rs 62,481.88 crore due to the severe Kharif drought affecting 57.93 lakh hectares in the state.

In a six-page letter dated October 22, Parameshwara stated that Karnataka experienced one of its worst Kharif droughts, with the Southwest Monsoon 2026 recording 551 mm of rainfall against the normal of 852 mm, a deficit of 35 per cent. He noted that this was the second-lowest rainfall recorded since 1956 and the seventh-lowest since 1901.

Of the 122 monsoon days, 79 witnessed deficit or large-defi...