Guwahati: The Assam government has declared more than half of the state as drought-hit, saying agriculture was badly hit due to scanty monsoon rains, officials said on Wednesday.
The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi late on Tuesday. After deliberating in detail, the meeting resolved to declare 14 of Assam's 27 districts drought-hit.
The relief and disaster management department has been put on an alert with officials asked to review the damage caused to agriculture due to the unusual dry climate.
`We have asked all the deputy commissioners of the 14 districts to work out an action plan for ensuring supply of drinking water, fodder, and providing irrigation facilities to the farmers,` Gogoi said.
To fight the drought and minimise the woes of the farmers, the government decided on a series of measures, including opening up of nurseries for paddy plants, besides alternative irrigation facilities.
The 14 districts declared drought-hit are Bongaigaon, Cachar, Dhubri, Goalpara, Golaghat, Hailakandi, Jorhat, Kamrup, Karbi Anglong, Kokrajhar, Lakhimpur, Morigaon, Nagaon, and Sivasagar.
There has been a deficit of nearly 30 percent rainfall from the beginning of June to July 12 -- the 14 districts received 414.8 mm of rain in the period compared to an average rainfall of 588.8 mm.
`There has been extensive damage and loss to crops due to inadequate monsoon rains,` Agriculture Minister Pramila Rani Brahma said.
`When there is a shortfall of 20 percent or more rainfall and crops are damaged due to dry spell or lack of rains a state can declare a drought like situation,` an official of the revenue and disaster management department said.
The meteorological department is pinning hopes on mid-July and August when monsoon activity increases in the northeast and decreases in other parts of the country.
`If the region receives abundant rainfall during this period, it will be able to make up for the deficit. Otherwise certain parts of the region might experience a drought-like situation,` a spokesman at the Guwahati-based Regional Meteorological Centre said.
Last month, the Manipur government declared the state drought-hit.
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