A Central study team to assess crop loss due to scanty rainfall is likely to visit the affected areas in the State tentatively by October 10, Agriculture Minister N. Chaluvarayaswamy has said.
Addressing presspersons in Kalaburagi on Tuesday, the Minister said that the State government has declared 195 taluks as drought-hit owing to shortage of rainfall this monsoon. Of the 195, 161 taluks have been declared as severely drought-hit and 34 taluks as moderately drought-hit.
The Agriculture Department has completed 95% of the crop loss survey. This exercise will be fully completed before the arrival of the Central study team. As per preliminary reports, standing crops on 40 lakh hectares have been damaged and the loss is estimated at nearly ₹28,000 crore. The State government has written to the Centre requesting release of ₹4,000 crore relief for the State, he added.
