During the past five months, south Bengal has got 80% less than normal rainfall; in north Bengal rainfall has been less than usual by 60%. Purulia and Bankura and rest of south Bengal are experiencing drought - like situation with water-table going menacingly down. No rainfall has been recorded in Purulia and Bankura districts during the past few months. But weather office records show that in a normal year Purulia records a rainfall of 35 mm during this period of the year and Bankura 39 mm. Midnapore accounts for 56 mm of rainfall during summer.

In south Bengal water table has receded from 15 feet to 40 feet in some districts, as there has been no respite from sweltering heat. Although boro paddy has been saved to a great extent following receipt of irrigation water from Tenughat Dam in Bihar, the yield of the crop has been less because of shortage of irrigation. The absence of rains has resulted in a crop loss worth Rs. 1000 million in the four districts of Bankura, Purulia, Birbhum and Bankura. Sowing of jute seeds and aus paddy has been affected because of drought like conditions. The fields are parched and irrigation is wanting. Even sources of drinking water such as dug wells are drying up as the water-table has gone further down.

The Left Front government in West Bengal has so far sanctioned Rs 1150 million to partly offset the effects of the heat wave. The money will be spent on creating jobs for the farm labour, on reclaiming potable water source and small irrigation facilities. It will also be utilized to repair power lines.

Waiving farm loans is also on the agenda of the State Government but before that it will have to decide whether conditions fulfil the criteria of a drought prevailing in the state. The State government may also phase out the loan repayment schedules of the farmers too.

The State government feels that the situation is quite alarming following continued and prolonged dry spell in the state.

It has already adopted some measures to counter the situation caused by lack of rainfall and is in the process of devising fresh ones to provide relief to the people, farmers in particular. The State Finance Minister, Dr. Ashim Dasgupta, has said that two thirds of the 0.25 million tube-wells in the State are operational now. The water levels of some rivers are low. In case of some other rivers, the river bed is dry. To combat the situation in the last one and a half months 47,000 acre feet of water was pumped into the DVC system for irrigation purposes. Water has been made available from the Mayurakshi and Knagsabati reservoirs too. The Public Health Engineering Department has sanctioned more than Rs. 250 million for augmenting supply of drinking water in rural and urban areas. The Development and Planning Department too ahs released an additional Rs. 180 million. The Relief Department has sanctioned Rs. 60 million for gratuitous relief. The State Government's has so far spent around Rs. 500 million to aid people suffering from prolonged dry spell. Dr Dasgupta has said that the State had been subjected to prolonged dry spell in 1982 too but the situation was far less severe then. After 1982, the irrigated area in the state has gone up to 58% of the total land cultivated as against 36% then. Thus the State can more effectively combat the drought or drought-like situations.