Tamil Nadu, comprising 32 districts, will be declared drought

affected in view of poor rainfall received during the northeast

monsoon, Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam said on Tuesday.
He announced a slew of relief measures, including waiver of
land tax for farmers, to tackle drought situation in the State.
As 17 farmers had committed suicide due to various
reasons, the government would grant a solatium of Rs. 3
lakh to families of each of these farmers, he said.
As for media reports that highlighted farmers' deaths due to
drought, he said detailed reports were sought from Collectors
and further compensation would be granted based on the
reports.
As huge funds were required to protect people from drought,
assistance from the Centre would be sought and a petition
sent to the Centre at the earliest, Mr. Panneerselvam said in a
statement.
The measures to tackle drought include efforts to convert
crop loans from cooperative banks and commercial banks
into medium term loans. Cooperative banks have lent loans to
the tune of Rs. 3,028 crore this year and all of them would be
converted into medium term loans.