China: Millions of people lack water for drinking because of drought

According to China's Xinhua news agency, more than 5.5 million people in the southwest region are suffering from a shortage of drinking water due to severe drought.

Sichuan soil cracking (Photo: AP)

Little rain in Sichuan province forced authorities to allocate clean water to the worst-hit areas. In most areas of this province, there has been no heavy rain since February and it is forecasted that there will be no significant rain before the end of March.

According to Sichuan province governor, 6 million pets and 560,000 hectares of land are affected during the drought. Damage is estimated at nearly 300 million yuan (38 million USD).

Many areas of China are frequently affected by water shortage or drought. Some people blame this situation for climate change. Last year, most Sichuan and neighboring Chongqing provinces were affected by a severe drought.

Recently, other areas of China experienced abnormal weather conditions as well. In Shanxi Province, earlier this year, hundreds of thousands of people resorted to emergency water supplies due to low rainfall.

WALL VY