The State government has opposed the revised Manual for Drought Management 2016 brought out by the Centre, which is effective from kharif 2017, and demanded its withdrawal on the ground that it will severely reduce the aid to the State for drought-affected taluks.
Unlike in the 2009 manual for drought management, which was a mere guideline and not mandatory for the States to follow, the ‘moderate’ drought category has been deleted in the new manual. It means drought-hit areas will now be categorised as ‘normal’ and ‘severe’.
Only in case of ‘severe’ drought, will a State be eligible for Central assistance from the National Disaster Relief Fund (NDRF).
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said “this being the case, most of the genuinely affected small and marginal farmers will not be able to avail of input subsidy for crop loss, and it will go against the grain of the scheme.” The government has opposed changes in parameters for drought assessment. The new manual for drought management limits Centre’s scope to offer financial assistance to States in the eventuality of drought.
On July 24, Mr. Siddaramaiah had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying “stringent parameters/eligibility conditions will make it difficult for the State government to declare taluks with significant crop loss ‘severely’ drought affected.”
The new guidelines “will drastically reduce Central assistance in future. This will increase hardship of farmers,” the Chief Minister said. In the last 16 years, different parts of the State have experienced drought.