Bhubaneswar, Sept 6 (PTI) The Odisha government Monday said farming in the ongoing kharif season has been affected in 102 blocks spread over 20 districts due to deficient rainfall.

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The opposition BJP and the Congress demanded that the government declare the entire state as drought-hit and provide immediate assistance to the affected cultivators.

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The issue was debated in the state Assembly here after the government Chief Whip Pramila Mallick moved a motion on the prevailing dry spell.

Both the opposition parties were demanding a threadbare discussion on the dry spell which is gradually taking the shape of an acute drought.

Participating in the debate, BJP chief Whip Mohan Majhi said that the state's BJD dispensation has completely failed to address the drought-like situation even as the party is ruling Odisha for over two decades.

“The government has no long term action plan to overcome the dry spell situation even as drought hit the state frequently.

“The BJD government also failed to keep its promises and provide 35 per cent irrigation facilities to agricultural land in each district,” Majhi said.

Congress member Adhiraj Panigrahi said that the farmers should be provided with agricultural input subsidy of Rs 20,000 by the central government and an equal amount by the state government.

The farmers have been hit by the drought-like situation and the government has failed to meet the requirement of the cultivators during this crisis period, he said.

However, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Sudam Marandi rejected the allegation levelled by the opposition, claiming that the state government was very sensitive towards the situation faced by the farmers.

The district collectors have been asked to closely monitor the situation and inform the government about the changing dry spell situation, he said.

Noting that the last week's rainfall has brought some improvement in Ganjam, Gajapati, Rayagada, Dhenkanal and some other districts, the minister said the forecast of a normal monsoon has not been applicable for Odisha this time.

The state received 16.6 per cent less rainfall in June while it was 21.3 per cent less in July and 44.7 per cent less in August.

The cumulative deficit of rainfall during the peak monsoon session from June to September 2 was minus 29.3 per cent, the minister pointed out.

All the major, medium and minor reservoirs are facing shortage of water and some of them are not in a position to release water for irrigation.

However, the government has implemented a Contingency Crop Plan and making all efforts to save the existing crop in districts, the minister said adding that there are specific norms for declaration of drought in a state.

“We are closely monitoring rainfall deficiency, crop situation, remote sensing based Vegetation Indices, soil moisture and hydro logical indices,” he said assuring the House that the state government was taking appropriate measures to tide over the situation.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)