Drought Diplomacy: Modi Meets State Chief Ministers to Tackle Water Crisis

NEW DELHI (Sputnik) — Narendra Modi's government has been facing the daunting task of how to tackle drought and the consequent water crisis. Almost 11 Indian states are facing drought, and each state has its own demand and requirements. To tackle the drought situation in a unique way, Modi has been meeting state Chief Ministers and listening to their requirements and also sharing the strategy to solve the problem. 

So far Modi has held meetings with the Chief Ministers of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

​Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das and officials held meeting with Prime Minister Modi to find ways to mitigate the drought in the state.

The Prime Minister chaired each high level meeting on the drought and water scarcity situation. The Chief Ministers of respective states were present in the meeting along with senior officials from the state. Senior officials of the Government of India were also present. Both the state and the center agreed to work together to resolve the crisis.

A large part of India is in the grip of severe drought due to two successive years of bad monsoon. At least 1,58,205 villages in 313 districts in 11 states have been declared drought affected, affecting more than 25 percent of the Indian population.