In the wake of the disappointing spell of monsoon last year and the drought which followed, State Government is banking on measures which will lessen the impact of such calamity in future along with aiding those bearing its brunt now.
Compensation for farmers who suffered crop losses due to scarce rains have been dispatched by the Government and will reach them shortly, officials assured. Funds to the tune of Rs112 crores meant for drought relief have been forwarded to districts on March 16, informed Sanjay Kumar Shrivastav, State Project Officer of Disaster Management Department.
“Additional Rs42 crores has been given to districts for mitigating impacts of the dry spell in cities during the ongoing summer. These funds are to be used for ensuring adequate supply of water to the urban populace,” he further said.
Three weeks after receiving the compensation funds, districts are halfway through with the procedure to deliver these funds to its recipients. “The money has been forwarded to circle officer. Presently, they are in the process of verifying the farmers who are on the list to be compensated. They will receive their compensation in the coming seven to ten days,” said Garhwa Deputy Commissioner Neha Arora.
Alternative means of livelihood, occupations apart from agriculture, are also being promoted to cover the losses incurred by farmers in form of crop losses due to drought, added Shrivastav.
Going the extra mile, authorities are also focussing on water conservation comprehensively across the State in order to rule out severe water scarcity after a dry spell in coming days. Even Centre and State run initiatives like Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and Yojna Banao Abhiyaan are being employed to achieve this goal.
“Resistance has to be built against droughts and dry spells. On these lines, ponds and reservoirs are being built on priority basis under MGNREGA and will be completed before monsoon. Moreover, recommendations of Yojna Banao Abhiyaan ask for constructing dobhas (water pits). These steps will help in collecting the rainwater from monsoon this year for future use,” said Arora.
Changes in agricultural practices in Jharkhand are also being encouraged for saving water in the process of crop production. “Farmers have been asked to change their conventional methods of farming with the motive of getting desired yield with reduced irrigation. We have urged them to use hybrid variety of seeds which require less water and to plant crops with smaller lifecycles,” Shrivastav said.
A mobile application, Jal Sanchayan, which was recently launched by Government of India for ensuring individual participation towards water conservation, will also be put to use to propagate the cause, he further added.