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USAID earmarks $ 6m for drought relief in India, Pak, Afghanistan

The United States Agency for International Development has announced that it will give one million dollars each to India and Pakistan and four million dollars to Afghanistan for drought relief work. It has also shipped 40,000 metric tons of wheat to Afghanistan for immediate distribution.

In India, non-governmental organisations in Rajasthan will receive the money to implement cash-for-work projects to enable the worst affected people to meet their families' needs, such as food, animal fodder and water. In Pakistan, Baluchistan and Sindh are the worst-affected provinces.

State Department spokesman Philip Reeker said existing sanctions against the Taliban do not ban humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people.

The US is the biggest donor of humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, with contributions of about 77 million dollars last year.

PTI

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