Centre rejects state’s drought package proposal

Ranchi: The Centre has rejected the state’s proposal to declare drought in 55 blocks across seven districts in Jharkhand and provide relief packages to over five lakh of farmers hit by crop losses because of the erratic monsoon in 2019.
Rejection of the proposal, which was sent to the Centre in May after the state cabinet passed it in April this year, will further hit the farmers who are already suffering because of the lockdown, the state disaster management department said.
Special secretary of the state disaster management department, Manish Tiwari, said, “Recently, the Centre rejected our proposal for a drought compensation. The state government’s field inspectors had identified 55 blocks in Bokaro, Chatra, Pakur, Deoghar, Giridih, Godda and Hazaribag districts that were hit by drought in 2019.”
Government sources, however, said the rejection is possibly because of the delay in sending the proposal. An official said, “Ideally, October end is the timeline every year by which drought package proposals have to be sent to the Centre, but the state government delayed it by over six months.”
Asked about the fate of lakhs of farmers who suffered crop losses, Tiwari said the state government has to take a call as the role of the disaster management department is limited after the Centre’s rejection. He said, “Our job is to process the claims and issue the funds when it arrives from the Centre.”
State agriculture minister Badal Patralekh is not available for comments on the matter.