India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has advised the nine states under a declared drought to move from commodity grains to short-duration horticultural crops.
A delayed or deficient monsoon has put nine states – Assam, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Manipur, Nagaland, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh – in drought.
‘Calamity Relief Funds’ have been distributed to Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh, reported The Hindu.
Prime Minister Singh said India had adequate central grain reserves to guarantee food security, but advised states to move to area-specific strategies and aim for higher production of vegetables and other horticultural crops with fast growth able to take advantage of intermittent rain.
