BENGALURU, July 15 -- Chief minister D K Shivakumar has asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to send a Central team to the state to assess what he described as an emerging drought.

In a letter on Tuesday, Shivakumar said the state had received only 203 mm of rainfall against the normal 292 mm as of July 11, resulting in a 30% rainfall deficit. He urged the Centre to assess conditions on ground before they worsened further.

"Such a visit would provide a first-hand appreciation of the severity of the emerging drought conditions and reassure the farming community that the Government of India stands with them in this difficult period," he wrote.

The chief minister attributed the shortfall to an erratic southwest monsoon that entered Karnatak...