The uneven and deficient monsoon rainfall is likely to dampen foodgrain production in the upcoming rabi, or winter, season — after kharif cultivation was affected in vast swathes of the country, particularly in Maharashtra and Karnataka. The central government is sending teams to Maharashtra and Karnataka — the two states that have declared a chunk of their cultivated areas as “drought hit” — to assess the impact on kharif crops, Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Monday.