The Centre on Tuesday released rs 2,160 crore towards mitigation measures under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) for the drought-hit areas in Maharashtra. The State has so far received Rs 4248.59 crore as aid for drought relief.
Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the helping Maharashtra, one of the worst drought-hit states in the country, in its efforts to tackle the situation.
“Thank you Hon PM @narendramodi ji for giving another installment of ?2160 crore towards drought mitigation measures from NDRF in the state of Maharashtra !
Total assistance received so far is Rs 4248.59 crore,” he tweeted.
The state declared drought in 151 tehsils on October 31 last year, in accordance with NDRF norms. The Centre had approved ?4,714.28 assistance to drought-hit Maharashtra for kharif season in 2018-19.
Due to poor monsoon, many areas in Maharashtra are already reeling under drought-like situation. Only 18.51 per cent water is left in dams and reservoirs and 12,000 villages and hamlets are depending on water tankers. An estimated 82 lakh farmers are affected by the drought. The situation is likely to worsen in the Marathwada and Vidarbha (Nagpur) regions.
Considering this grave situation, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had urged the Election Commission of India to relax the Model Code of Conduct in Maharashtra to start relief work.
In the letter to ECI, Fadnavis had stated that voting for the Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra have completed on April 29 and if Model Code of Conduct is relaxed government will be able to take various initiatives and complete developmental projects to tackle drought.
Taking cognizance of the grave situation, the ECI had agreed to relax several conditions of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) to carry out drought relief measures in Maharashtra.
