Karnataka’s drought assistance proposal to Union government sees upward revision by ₹1,818 crore following changes in SDRF norms

A farmer walk in dry agriculture land, Shivamogga district, in Karnataka, which is facing drought. | Photo Credit: S.K. Dinesh

Revising the proposal for drought relief from ₹20,585.73 crore to ₹22,400.58 crore, the State government has sought urgent intervention of the Centre for early consideration and release of drought assistance to Karnataka- currently facing one of the worst droughts in several decades.

The drought relief has been changed following the revision of assistance norms under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) by the Ministry of Home Affairs on October 26, 2026.   

Appointment sought

Seeking appointment of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Deputy Chief Minister and Revenue Minister G. Parameshwara in letters to the three leaders, said that 226 taluks have been affected by drought and crops over 57.93 lakh hectares have suffered extensive damage causing an estimated loss of about ₹62,481.88 crore. “The crisis has placed immense financial distress upon lakhs of farming families,” the letter said. 

After the MHA changed the norms of SDRF for a period between 2026-2027 and 2030-2031, the Karnataka’s requirement towards crop loss input subsidy has gone up from ₹6,128.70 crore to ₹7,943.554 crore — an increase by ₹1,814.85 crore resulting in an overall increase of the State’s requirement from ₹20,585.73 crore to ₹22,400.58 crore. The other components previously submitted have remained unchanged.  

Still very low

While Mr. Parameshwara welcomed the Union government’s decision that has helped revise the input subsidy cost, he said that even after revision it is still low at ₹11,000 per hectare for rainfed crops, ₹22,000 for irrigated crops, and ₹30,000 for perennial crops, as against the actual cost incurred on seeds, fertilizer, agricultural labour, irrigation and other essential inputs.

Questioning the Centre’s reliance on the 2015-2016 agriculture census data to determine eligibility for disaster relief, he said that the decade- old landholding data does not adequately reflect present agricultural realities and could potentially deprive eligible small and marginal farmers of assistance. Instead, he urged the Centre, to consider adopting Karnataka’s FRUITS database, which provides a contemporary and verified basis for identifying beneficiaries.  

Published - November 03, 2026 11:30 pm IST