Drought in half the country, admits Pawar

It's official -- almost half of the country's districts are suffering a drought as the number of affected districts has shot up from 177 last week to 246.

On Wednesday, the government went public with figures for rice, which has been the biggest crop casualty. The government said that the rice production will fall by about 10 million tones due to failed monsoon.

To discuss the worsening situation, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar held a meeting in New Delhi on Wednesday with the food and civil supplies ministers of all states.

"It comes to about 46-47 per cent of total districts in the country. This year there is 29 per cent less rainfall," Pawar said after the meeting.

Pawar also said that there may be a shortfall in production of oilseeds and sugarcane apart from rice.

The Centre has already asked states to strengthen the Public Distribution System (PDS) and ensure that all ration shops are well-stocked. In his Independence Day speech Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had called on all states to crack down on hoarders and black marketeers.

In a political gesture, the ruling Congress party leadership also met on Wednesday. They told all their MPs and MLAs to take a 20 per cent pay cut and stop flying by first or business class. The party also asked its ministers to cut foreign travel and not splurge in renovating.

As a suggestion to the government, the Congress said the job guarantee scheme should be made more effective in the drought-hit districts.

It's a symbolic gesture of taking a 20 per cent pay cut for drought relief, but with the assembly election due, the real test for the party is to ensure they maintain the prices of essential commodities.