GoM To Ready Contingency Plan

Pune/New Delhi: There is every possibility of 2009 being a

A nine-member central team today arrived here to assess the extent of drought damage in the state.

The team, headed by managing director of Horticulture Mission Board Bijay Kumar, will visit Dumka, Lohardaga, Latehar, Palamau, Gumla, Jamtara, Jasidih, Deoghar, Giridih, Chatra and Garhwa districts from tomorrow.

When Uttar Pradesh declared 47 of its districts as drought-hit, sugar mill owners of the state were left feeling bitter. Large parts of the cane belt are located in these districts that saw many sugar mills come up over the past several years.

With three quarters of all districts receiving deficient rainfall so far and the overall rain deficit worsening since last week, the country seems headed into the worst drought year over the last two decades.

Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi while taking part in a high-level meeting held to review the drought-like situation today said that he would instruct all the Ministers to take up the cases of the farmers not getting loans with the banks in their respective districts.

Britain must find ways to grow more food while using less water, energy and fertilizers to help feed a growing world population and offset the effects of climate change on agriculture, the government said on Monday.

A senior minister said last year's sharp rise in the cost of food and oil and a severe drought in Australia showed the urgent need to develop a food security plan.

New Delhi: Though the government is still chary of pronouncing a full-scale crisis over the errant monsoon and depleted sowing, prospects of more parts of the country being declared drought affected are increasing with the Met department on Monday downgrading its rainfall forecast from 93% of long-term average to 87%.

It is not just crops and fruits which would suffer on account of drought but power generation in the state was likely to be hit as it was expected that generation would be far less than the target for the year.

This was stated by Chief Minister PK Dhumal in reply to a question on power generation during the Question Hour in the Assembly today.

All political parties of Bihar today resolved to declare the state as drought hit and sought adequate financial help from the Centre to meet the crisis.

The all-party meeting held here today to discuss the issue of drought also decided to send a joint memorandum to the Centre in this regard.

Bringing back grim memories of the past, an agrarian tragedy threatens to engulf Andhra Pradesh as result of the failure of the monsoon, triggering suicides by farmers.