DK Shivakumar warns of severe Karnataka drought and orders emergency power measures

In Bengaluru, Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar warned of a looming severe drought across the state due to a weak monsoon driven by the El Nino effect. Following a meeting with the Energy Department on Friday, Shivakumar directed officials to prepare an emergency plan to secure power supplies and urged farmers not to plant water-intensive crops relying on depleted dam water.

During the meeting, Shivakumar instructed energy officials to ensure a continuous supply of coal for thermal power generation and to operationalize government-reserved coal mines. The Chief Minister's Office stated that the directive aims to maintain adequate power generation and address rising electricity demands from data centres, artificial intelligence infrastructure, and the digital economy.

Shivakumar noted that Karnataka's peak power demand is projected to reach 38 gigawatts by 2035, requiring long-term capacity expansion plans. Energy Minister K J George, who attended the meeting, requested the clearance of Rs 12,631 crore in outstanding dues owed by various government departments to the state's Electricity Supply Companies.

The warning followed a cabinet meeting on Thursday, where Shivakumar appealed to farmers to avoid planting crops that depend on dam reservoirs. He revealed that water inflows into major state dams, including the Tungabhadra, Ghataprabha, Malaprabha, Narayanapura, and Vanivilasa, have plummeted to zero.

Shivakumar highlighted a drastic drop in reservoir levels compared to the previous year. The water level at Hemavati has halved from 80 feet to 40 feet, while the Krishna Raja Sagara dam has fallen to 22 feet from 100 feet. The Kabini reservoir stands at 26 feet, down from 79 feet last year, with overall inflows into these dams dropping to 20 percent.

To mitigate the impact of the water shortage, the Chief Minister instructed district ministers to tour their respective regions to manage drinking water and fodder supplies. He also ordered the urgent drilling of borewells to address the escalating crisis.