BackMonsoon rains to improve after 7 July: agriculture ministry
Minister Radha Mohan Singh says the government is fully prepared to handle poor rainfall
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New Delhi: The monsoon is expected to improve after 7 July but the government is fully prepared to tackle the situation in case of poor rainfall, agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh said on Thursday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting to review the monsoon situation and the implementation of the Food Security Act. The meeting, which lasted more than two hours, was attended by finance minister Arun Jaitley, home minister Rajnath Singh, food minister Ram Vilas Paswan and the agriculture minister.
The agriculture ministry and the meteorological department briefed the Prime Minister about the progress of the monsoon in the country and ongoing sowing operations of the kharif crops (grown in the summer crop season) including paddy.
The country has received 45% less rainfall in the first spell till 17 June. The meteorological department has forecast the monsoon to be below normal at 93% of the long period average.
The agriculture minister said that contingency plans have been prepared and advisories have been issued to states.
Asked about a financial package to deal with a bad monsoon, Singh said: “We are consulting with various ministries on the issue and then will move a proposal to Cabinet."
The minister said that states have been asked to keep aside 10% of funds available under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) for interventions to mitigate drought-like situations in case of deficient rainfall.
Till last week, rice had been sown/transplanted in 759,000ha, pulses in 260,000ha, oilseeds in 123,000ha and coarse cereals in about 1.23 million hectares.
According to people with knowledge of the matter, the meeting also discussed extending the deadline for implementation of the Food Security Act after 4 July.
The Act came into force on 5 July 2013.
States have to identify the eligible beneficiaries within one year after the commencement of the Act. So far, only 11 states have implemented the law.
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