(IANS): Nearly 24 million people have been affected by drought in China's various provinces since last October while causing a big financial loss to the government, authorities said Thursday.

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The drought has affected 23.7 million people living in Yunnan, Gansu and Sichuan provinces till date, causing economic losses of more than $1.1 billion, Xinhua quoted civil affairs authorities as saying Thursday.

The National Disaster Reduction Commission (NDRC) and the Ministry of Civil Affairs initiated an emergency response to the drought Thursday and sent work teams to aid in disaster relief.

The NDRC has also organised meetings to analyse the causes of drought and work out relief measures.