According to national assessments, approximately how many districts in India are identified as drought-prone?

Correct option is C

· A national disaster-management document notes that 971 blocks of 183 districts covering about 74.6 million ha have been identified as drought-prone areas of the country.
· These districts lie mainly in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid regions.
Why other options are wrong
· (a) 68 districts – around 67 drought-prone districts were identified earlier by the Irrigation Commission (1972); this is an older, narrower estimate, not the present larger coverage.
· (b) 96 districts – refers to an earlier phase of the Drought Prone Areas Programme (DPAP) when 96 districts were covered before extension.
· (d) 300 districts – exceeds the officially cited figure; while many districts may face drought at times, formal drought-prone classification is ~183 districts, not 300.