A sub-normal monsoon has given rise to the possibility of drought in parts of the country, but the government is ready to tackle it.
A sub-normal monsoon has given rise to the possibility of drought in parts of the country, but the government is ready to tackle it. The Narendra Modi government has prepped a contingency.
Here is what the Centre has prepared in its mitigation plan:
The drought mitigation plan envisages more diesel and seed subsidy for farmers and also relief from loans and interest, apart from alternate plans of irrigation if rains are scanty.
The plan includes introduction of diesel subsidy scheme for providing protective irrigation to standing crops in the rainfall deficit areas.
Enhancement of ceiling on seeds subsidy under various Central schemes is planned to partially recompense the farmer for the expenditure in resowing and/or purchasing drought tolerant variety of seeds.
Special scheme will be implemented for rejuvenation of perennial horticulture crops under National Horticulture Mission.
Rescheduling of crop loans and providing interest subvention on rescheduled loans in drought affected areas is also planned.
Additional budget allocation will be made under the Accelerated Fodder Development Programme (AFDP) to states with rainfall deficit.
Additional allocation will also be made under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) and National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) for drought mitigation measures.
Shailesh Nayak, a top bureaucrat in the Earth Sciences Ministry said on Wednesday that monsoon rains have revived in central and northern parts of India known for soybean and sugarcane cultivation, but warned that the country is still expected to have below-average monsoon this year.
However, the Centre now believes that rain in Delhi and Mumbai is a sign that the stalled monsoon is now progressing again and it might not need the plan after all.
The Met department has said that rainfall in July and August is likely to be better than in June, the first month of the four-month monsoon season when the precipitation was 43 per cent below average across India.
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