Purulia worst-affected by Bengal drought

West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee today said Purulia is the worst affected among the drought-hit districts of the state.

West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on Saturday said Purulia is the worst affected among the drought-hit districts of the state.

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"With agricultural production falling down to 6.5 per cent, Purulia is most affected by the drought. In Birbhum, Bankura, Hoogly and Burdwan, the production has fallen down to 30, 33, 74 and 77 per cent respectively," he told reporters in Burdwan after a meeting with district officials.

The state government has also asked the Centre to send a review team to the drought-affected districts.

To ensure that the rabi harvest is not affected, the state's agriculture department will distribute free seeds of maize, oil seeds and dal, he said.

"We had demanded Rs 1400 crore from the Centre to give work for 100 days under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) scheme, but the Centre has given as only Rs 170 crore, leading to a halt in the allotment of work," Bhattacharjee said.

Eleven districts of the state have been declared as drought-hit with the state government allocating Rs 50 crore to tackle the situation caused by a rain deficit of 30 per cent.