BEIJING — China has earmarked 830 million yuan ($118.6 million) to alleviate drought and ensure agricultural production, according to the Ministry of Finance (MOF) on Nov 12.

A total of 605 million yuan of the fund will be used to relieve drought and secure water supply in provinces including Anhui, Fujian, Jiangxi, Henan, Hubei and Hunan, as well as Chongqing municipality, said the MOF in a statement.

The rest of the fund will be used as relief fund for eight provinces where disasters like floods, earthquakes and mudslides had occurred.

The move marks the third time since the beginning of this month for the central government to earmark the drought relief fund.

Due to high temperatures and lack of rainfall, drought in areas along the Yangtze River including Anhui, Jiangxi, Hubei, Hunan and Chongqing continued.

The central government has activated a series of level-IV emergency response, the lowest in China's four-tier national emergency response system, for drought prevention and relief in disaster-hit areas.