Chennai, Feb 6 (IANS): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Monday announced relief of Rs 20,000 per hectare for the farmers of the delta region who have lost crops due to unseasonal rains.

Stalin made the announcement after getting feedback from the ministers and other bureaucrats who visited the rain-affected districts of Myladuthurai, Tiruvarur, Thanjavur, and Nagapattinam.

The relief package, according to a statement from the Chief Minister's office, includes Rs 20,000 per hectare of harvest-ready paddy to farmers who have lost 33 per cent of their crops in heavy rains. This is on the basis of the disaster management rules of the government.

The Chief Minister also issued orders to distribute 8 kg of crop seeds per acre at a 50 per cent subsidy to urad dal farmers who have lost their crops during the unusual rains in delta districts of the state and to undertake urad dal cultivation again.

The package announced by Stalin includes provision of paddy harvesting machines on rent at a 50 per cent subsidy to paddy farmers through the State Agriculture Engineering Department. The Chief Minister also directed officials to undertake additional crop harvest checks in villages.