Overview
- Karnataka has formally asked the Union government to treat the state's severe water crisis as a national disaster to access extra central funding and looser norms for drought relief.
- Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara said the state is facing one of its worst droughts in 150 years with sowing below 40 percent and that the chief minister and he have written to the Prime Minister seeking help.
- Parameshwara is touring affected districts including Chikkaballapura and Bengaluru Rural and has scheduled a Bengaluru-division review with the chief minister on July 26 to assess drinking water, fodder and crop losses.
- The state has ordered immediate measures such as enrolling farmers in crop insurance, allocating Rs 1 crore to each Assembly constituency for drinking water, drilling borewells where needed and mobilising fodder supplies for livestock.
- Political decisions are running in parallel: a planned cabinet expansion awaits Congress high-command approval as leaders are in New Delhi, and the drought appeal is unfolding against protests and calls for accountability over alleged national exam irregularities.