Central teams to assess drought

Tribune News Service

Dehradun, May 18

Thegovernment will have to wait for the final assessment of Central teams to become eligible for the drought package. It has already declared that the state is facing a meteorological drought.

The Uttarakhand Government declared the entire state as meteorological drought-hit due to less rainfall between October, 2015, and April, 2016. It has also declared that seven districts were facing agriculture drought due to less rainfall for the same period.

The assessment by the teams is likely to impact the drought package to be sanctioned by the Centre to the state. Farmers in Pithoragarh, Champawat, Almora, Bageshwar, Nainital, Rudraprayag and Pauri Garhwal districts have been facing an uneasy rabi season and can look forward to some kind of assistance in the coming days to compensate their losses. Significantly, like previous year, this year too, the Department of Horticulture failed to carry the survey of damages incurred to the horticulture produce.