Karnataka declares 23 more taluks drought-hit; total rises to 124

Karnataka declared 23 additional taluks drought-affected on Thursday, raising the total to 124. Of these, 21 are severely and 2 moderately drought-hit. Based on KSNDMC assessment and ground-truthing across 214 villages, the declaration takes immediate effect for six months. Deputy commissioners are authorised to implement relief measures under State Disaster Response Fund guidelines.