17 districts in Gujarat declared drought-hit: Parimal Nathwani

VADODARA: The Union Government has declared 17 districts in Gujarat as drought-affected, Rajya Sabha MP Parimal Nathwani has said.

These districts are Vadodara, Bharuch, Anand, Kheda, Ahmedabad, Jamnagar, Amreli, Banashkantha, Bhavnagar, Gandhinagar, Junagadh, Kutchh, Mehsana, Patan, Porbandar, Rajkot and Surendranagar, Nathwani said in a statement issued here quoting Harish Ravat, Union Minister of Water Resources.

The Ministry of Agriculture has declared 85 districts in the country as drought-affected during 2012-13 due to shortage of rain, he said.

"Out of the total, 17 districts are in Gujarat. 26 districts in Karnataka, four districts in Kerala, 16 in Maharashtra and 12 in Rajasthan have been declared as drought-hit," Nathwani added.