New Delhi: Concerned over drought conditions
in several parts of the country, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
will address the Chief Ministers of all states here on Monday
on measures to salvage the situation.
The Prime Minister would make use of the presence of
Chief Ministers, who are gathering here for a meeting on
internal security, to discuss the worsening agriculture
scenario following inadequate rainfall and shrinkage in area
under cultivation, sources said.
According to recent data, as many as 161 districts out
of a total of about 600 have been declared drought affected.
Singh in his address to the Chief Secretaries of various
states last week had expressed concern over rising prices of
essential commodities like pulses, sugar and vegetables and
had asked them to activate the public distribution system
(PDS), "which is an important safety net especially for the
poor and helps cushion them against price rise."
The Prime Minister also emphasised the need for planning
for the coming Rabi (winter crop) season to compensate for the
loss in output during the Kharif (summer crop) season.
Singh, according to sources, is likely to ask the states
to take steps to curb speculative trading by taking
anti-hoarding measures and make use of funds available under
NREGA (National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) to expand
irrigation facilities in the drought-hit areas.
Meanwhile, the centre has written to the states to
initiate steps for saving crops for the forthcoming Rabi
season as water scarcity is likely to continue.
In a letter to the Chief Secretaries of various states,
Agriculture Ministry yesterday said, "we feel it is extremely
important, more so for coming Rabi season, when water stress
conditions are likely to persist, if the present monsoon trend
continues."
The states, it said, should make use of the funds
available under NREGA to develop irrigation facilities in
different parts of the country.
The recent NREGA amendment, according to the letter,
"opens a new window of opportunity for construction of water
conservation structures and other ... moisture conservation
measures, apart from providing irrigation in the fields of
majority of farmers in the country."
The ministry also underlined the need for convergence
and implementation of various schemes and programmes in a
coordinated manner to mitigate the adverse impact of water
stress and deficient rainfall on the agriculture sector.
Bureau Report
First Published: Thursday, August 13, 2009, 15:31