JAIPUR: The state government on Monday extended the status of scarcity affected areas to 3739 villages of 11 districts. These villages were given this status due failed rabi crop but the extension has been given after witnessing deficient rainfall. The relief activities in these districts villages will now continue till August 15, 2012.

Earlier in March, due to failure of Rabi crop 'scarcity affected' was declared in Ajmer, Barmer, Churu, Nagaur and Jaisalmer districts.

The Sri Lankan government has allocated 3.7 billion rupees to provide relief for the people affected by the current drought weather conditions.

The southwest monsoon in India this year was expected to be 85 per cent of the long-period average (LPA), with Punjab, Haryana, Saurashtra and Kutch regions in Gujarat and western Rajasthan experiencing drought-like conditions, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Friday. The forecast has a model error margin of +/- four per cent.

IMD considers the 50-year average rainfall of 89 cms as the LPA. Addressing reporters a day after it lowered its overall southwest monsoon forecast from normal to deficient, IMD said drought-like conditions were developing in several parts of the country.

The Union government on Friday granted Gujarat Rs.425 crore for rural drinking water supply and agreed to consider the State’s demand for an assistance of Rs.14,673 crore to meet the acute drought conditions.

The Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) on drought, headed by Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, and Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh, along with officials, on Thursday held a meeting with Chief Minister Narendra Modi, his Cabinet colleagues and officials.

AHMEDABAD: The central government has announced Rs 320 crore aid for drought relief for Gujarat even though there was no demand from the State. Union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar and Jairam Ramesh came on their own on a two day visit to assess the situation. During a review meeting with the State Government officials the Centre announced that Rs 425 Crore for supply of drinking water would be released immediately.

The ministers also announced 150 day employment under the MNREGA scheme. At present there is a provision for 100 days employment. They further announced that employment under MNREGA would be given not on per person basis but on family basis.

The government on Thursday directed the Karnataka government to submit a revised report on the severe drought prevailing across the state and funds required from the Centre to take up additional relief works.

Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, who was here to assess the drought situation in Karnataka, said an amount of Rs 286 crore under the National Rural Drinking Water Supply and Rs 334 crore under Watershed Management Programme would be disbursed to the state as a measure to overcome the drought situation.

Pouring cold water on Karnataka’s face, the Empowered Group of Ministers on Drought has asked to scale down “huge” fiancial demand from the Centre and come up with a realistic proposal outlining specific requisitions on short term and long term plans.

Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh and Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar held a a two-hour-long meeting with Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar and his cabinet colleagues besides officials in the Vidhana Soudha in Bangalore on Thursday.

Haryana has urged the Centre to give it a special package to deal with drought-like conditions in the State. Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda disclosed on Wednesday that in a written communication to the Union Government the increased expenditure on electricity to irrigate the fields had also been highlighted.

Meanwhile, Chief Secretary P.K. Chaudhery has constituted a Committee of Secretaries to keep a watch on the situation “arising out of deficient rainfall in the State”. The Committee, comprising administrative Secretaries of the Departments of Revenue, Cooperation, Irrigation, Agriculture, Power, Public Health, Food & Supplies, Rural Development and Animal Husbandry would meet weekly to take stock of the situation.

The empowered group of ministers (EGoM) on drought, chaired by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, today gave in-principle approval for a Rs 2,519-crore package to Maharashtra to tackle drought-like situation in the state.

The package is part of the total demand of Rs 4,919 crore the state had proposed and would address issues such as availability of drinking water, fodder and irrigation works.

JAIPUR: The state government has declared drought in Jodhpur, Nagaur, Barmer, Bikaner and Jaisalmer districts on Wednesday. The five districts have been worst-hit by deficit rain and will remain in the status of 'drought-affected' from August 1 to July 31 next year.

As per the emergency relief plans, collectors of all the above districts have been asked to do an early assessment of the total losses. To get maximum aid, chief minister Ashok Gehlot instructed the officials to mention everything in detail in the letters that will be presented to Centre. He also asked them to take the assessment exercise of losses seriously. To gauge the situation in the state, Union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar will visit Jaipur on August 3.