Karnataka has estimated its drought losses at Rs 46,324.50 crore across 177 taluks and has asked the Centre for Rs 7,142.64 crore from the National Disaster Response Fund for the 2026 kharif season. Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara said on 6 October that the state had never seen a drought of this kind. The state declared 101 taluks drought-affected on 27 August, 23 more on 17 September and 53 more on 22 September, and it was verifying a further 40. Three Central teams visited districts in early October to assess the damage, and the state wants an all-party delegation to meet the Prime Minister and the Union Agriculture and Home Ministers in Delhi, possibly between Dasara and Kannada Rajyotsava on 1 November.
The argument that the state has a strong case is based on the scale of the claim and the process it has followed. The first memorandum sought Rs 3,705.30 crore for 101 taluks, and a supplementary one added Rs 3,437.34 crore for 76 more, covering crops, farmers, livestock, drought-hit communities and drinking water. The state points to precedent: in 2023-24, losses were estimated at nearly Rs 49,000 crore, and it asked for Rs 18,000 crore but received only Rs 3,500 crore after the Supreme Court intervened. A united delegation, it says, would make a stronger case this time, and on 19 October Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar said opposition leaders had also expressed willingness to join.
The argument that the politics is unsettled begins with the opposition. In late September the BJP and the JD(S) refused to join the proposed delegation, and on 6 October Parameshwara said he was disappointed by statements from opposition leaders that they would not take part. The claim is also large: Rs 7,142.64 crore is about 15 percent of the estimated Rs 46,324.50 crore in losses, and the earlier experience, Rs 3,500 crore against a request of Rs 18,000 crore, shows that the Centre can release much less than the state asks. The number of drought-hit taluks has changed repeatedly and was due to rise again, so the totals will move, and there is no confirmed commitment from the BJP.
For the state the stakes are high, since drought hits farmers first and rural spending soon after. How quickly central aid arrives will affect crop compensation and drinking water in the worst-hit districts. For the country, the dispute is a reminder of the recurring argument over how disaster funds are shared between the Centre and the states, a recurring question. The report of the three Central teams, which Karnataka's Chief Secretary and officers were to brief, will shape the amount that is finally approved. The first memorandum and the supplementary one together add up to Rs 7,142.64 crore, which is the figure the state has put before the Centre.
Karnataka has built a detailed case, but the size of the release and the opposition's role remain uncertain. The Delhi visit planned for late October or early November will show how much weight the claim carries.
Featured image: The Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru (file photo). Photo: Moheen Reeyad, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.