An underwhelming monsoon has left large parts of Karnataka facing severe drought conditions, with preliminary government assessments pointing to a likely 50% loss in agriculture and horticulture harvests. State officials said 122 of 228 taluks facing drought-like conditions have recorded dry spells for three consecutive weeks, making crop cultivation difficult.

Karnataka has so far declared 102 of its 239 taluks as drought-hit, and 26 more may be added to the list within a week. The most affected districts are Mysuru, Mandya, Chamarajnagar, Hassan, Kolar and Chikkaballapura in the southern part of the state, while Haveri, Bidar and Raichur in the north are seeing a serious drop in sowing.

A revenue department official said the situation was dire for crop cultivation, with no immediate sign of monsoon revival expected to ease the widening rain deficit.