China called off its grade II drought emergency response on Tuesday as the severe drought in its southwestern regions eased after recent rain.

The drought, one of the worst in decades, eased in most parts of the Chongqing Municipality, provinces of Sichuan and Guizhou, and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, said the Office of State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters in a statement on its website.

But in Yunnan Province, the drought was still severe in most parts as the province had only received limited and scattered rainfalls, it said.

Southwestern China had six falls of rain between March 22 and April 26, which ranged in volume from 50 to 100 millimeters, figures from the China Meteorological Administration showed.

As of Tuesday, up to 123 million mu (about 8.3 million hectares) of arable land in China was affected by the drought, with 17.91 million people and 12.43 million farm animals still short of water, said the statement.