The Hindu : Drought looms large over northwest

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jul 23, 2002

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Drought looms large over northwest

By Gargi Parsai

New Delhi July 22. The National Democratic Alliance Government is faced with one its toughest challenges yet — the drought situation in the crucial north-western agricultural States of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, western Uttar Pradesh and parts of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Himachal Pradesh where the kharif crop has failed partially or totally due to the lack of monsoon rains. Of these, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Himachal Pradesh go to the polls next year.

A meeting today of the Crop and Weather Watch Group in the Union Agriculture Ministry noted with dismay the Indian Meteorological Department forecast of no rainfall in the north-western part of the country for another week.

The Ministry was keeping its fingers crossed for a last spell of rain this month to salvage the situation somewhat.

Now all hope of sowing the traditional kharif crop — paddy, coarse cereals, edible oils and pulses — is dashed with this latest weather forecast. In Madhya Pradesh, soyabean sowing is 25 lakh tonnes short of last year.

Rainfall is said to be about 25 per cent deficient this season and the water level in reservoirs is 48 per cent of last year and about 55 per cent of the last 10 years' average.

What is worrying is that the low moisture in the soil and inadequate water level in reservoirs will stretch the crisis situation into the rabi (wheat) season, sowing for which begins in October.

True, the granaries are overflowing with foodstocks at 648 lakh tonnes, about 405 lakh tonnes in excess of the normal on July 1, but a failed kharif crop will affect the next crop as well and an alarming situation may develop next year. Besides, drinking water shortage may also occur.

Though the Ministry is still reluctant to officially declare it a drought, it has devised an Action Plan for providing relief to the affected States through supply of drinking water and fodder and payment of compensation to farmers.

Its contingency plan for sowing alternative crops is still in place.

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