Farmers barrel drinking water supplied by the local government at Chengguan Township in Ruyang County of Luoyang, central China's Henan Province, February 4, 2009. Effective rainfall was nearly 80 percent less than in the same period of previous years. The local government has allocated some 25 million yuan (US$3.65 million) for drought relief and crops protection. www.examda.com　　

 　　Farmers irrigate farmland in Yichuan county of Luoyang, central China's Henan Province, February 2, 2009. 　　
　　Photo taken on February 5, 2009 shows a dead wheat seedling in Taiping township of Huining County, northwest China's Gansu Province. The county has suffered from severe drought since September 2008, affecting 150,667 hectares of farmland and leaving 184,000 people and 326,000 livestocks in shortage of water.