(CHEN HAINING)

A farmer walks in a dried-up pond in southwest China's Yunyang County, Yunnan Province, on February 24.

Yunnan has been experiencing the worst drought in six decades since last August because of scant rainfall and high temperatures. Almost 6 million people in the province face drinking water shortages.

Across China, drought has left 11.88 million people and more than 8 million head of livestock without adequate drinking water in 15 provinces and affected more than 3.5 million hectares of farmland.

The state activated its second highest-level drought emergency measures on February 24.