Bengaluru, Sep 14 (IANS): The Karnataka government on Thursday declared 161 taluks of the state as severely drought-hit.

It also announced that 34 taluks were facing moderate drought.

During the 2023 Monsoon, among the 31 districts and 236 taluks of the state, 195 taluks are facing drought situations, a government statement said.

As many as 161 taluks are regarded as severely affected by drought and 34 are moderately hit by drought with immediate effect for the next 6 months or till the next order in this regard, it added.

The state government had taken the decision based on the report by the district commissioners done as per the guidelines of drought declaration guidelines of the central government.

There is a delay of one week between the arrival and spread of Mansoon. In June, the Monsoon weakened and there was 56 per cent of shortage of rains than usual. In July, the state received 20 per cent additional Monsoon rains, however, this lasted for only one week.

In August, the shortage of rainfall reached 70 per cent -- the lowest in the last 125 years.

Earlier, Karnataka State Natural Disaster Management Committee’s (KSNDMC) report for the period between June 1, 2023 to August 19, 2023 the state received 487 mm of rainfall. When the evaluation was done as per the criterion the drought situation was found in 113 taluks. Later, the officers had taken up crop loss study of 1,519 villages of 113 taluks.

Karnataka Minister for Revenue Krishna Byre Gowda on Wednesday said that 195 of 227 taluks in the state are facing a drought-like situation.

"There is a shortage of more than 40 per cent of rainfall in the Malnad (hilly) region. There is a shortage of rain in the Cauvery catchment area and a similar situation exists in the interior regions of the state," he said.

A crop survey would be conducted in 40 taluks after 15 days. If they fall into the category of drought-prone areas, they would also be included in the list, he stated.