In what must have come as a major relief for the state government, a central team visited four districts of the state on Monday to take stock of crop loss due to drought. The state government is facing a serious financial crisis. Its coffers are empty and it needs at least Rs 8,000 crore to provide relief to the farmers whose Soyabean crops have been ruined due drought and pest. The state government has been pleading to the Centre for an aid package of Rs 2,500 crore for quite some time now. Besides the Chief Minister, many ministers have visited Delhi and met central ministers in this connection. However, thus far, the response of the Central government was cold. What is more, the Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan could not even protest publickly against his own party’s government. The state government, on November 5, has obtained the nod of the legislature to a Rs 8,000-odd crore supplementary budget to fund the relief effort. The visit of the central team is an indication that the Union government has taken the state’s demand under consideration. The central study team took stock of crop loss due to drought in Umaria, Rewa, Shahdol and Katni districts on Monday. Officers of districts and divisions accompanied the study team. The study team inspected crop loss at village Govarde in Manpur development block of Umaria district and held discussions with farmers at Chaupal. They talked to villagers and officers regarding sowing for Rabi season, irrigation resources and availability of drinking water till summer. The Central study team visited villages in Raipur, Mangawan and Hanumana tahasils of Rewa district. The villages included Nadaha, Semri Kalan, Hardi Number 2 Nawagaon, Arjunpur, Paikan and Masuriya. The held detailed discussions on crop cutting experiment, survey and list of affected farmers. The team visited Rewa Krishi Upaj Mandi and inspected quality of crop. The members also held discussions with Janardan Mishra on the situation. The Central study team visited villages Aswari and Malthar in Gohparu development block of Shahdol district. They inspected crops and held discussions with farmers. The team members also took stock of availability of drinking water, animal fodder and other arrangements. The Central study team visited villages Badwagon and Guruji Kalan in Katni district and Raipura some villages in Panna district. The team members took stock of crop loss in held discussions with officers and villagers regarding the situation. Source - http://www.freepressjournal.in