The government has declared Madhes province a disaster crisis zones due to severe drought conditions.
A Cabinet meeting held on Wednesday declared the eight districts of Madhes a disaster crisis zone based on the recommendation of Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak.
The declaration will remain in effect for three months.
On Tuesday, the Madhes provincial government had decided to recommend to the federal government to declare the province a crisis zone, citing drought conditions in the province due to lack of rainfall, insufficient water replenishment, drying up of water sources, severe water shortages impacting irrigation, and expected decline in production due to the drought.
According to Section 14 (2) (r) of the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act, the disaster management executive committee of a province can make a recommendation to the government of Nepal if there exists a situation to declare a disaster crisis in a disaster-affected area.
According to the Home Ministry, rice plantation has been completed in only 46 percent of the total land area in Madhes so far.
