Beijing : The recent devastating earthquake in southwest China has pushed back 1.4 million farmers into absolute poverty, an official said. The May 12 quake of magnitude 8, the deadliest disaster which struck the country in last three decades, has ravaged vast areas and flattened homes in Sichuan province and some other regions, leaving a gigantic task of rehabilitation. "The damage is so massive and many farmers have reversed into poverty again,' Fan Xiaojian, Director of the State Council and the cabinets leading group office of poverty-alleviation and development, said. China had been "tentatively' listening to the international experiences and lessons while designing recovery plans for the quake, which has affected more than 47,000 villages in three provinces, he said. "In many counties, the hard won anti-poverty achievements in previous two decades have disappeared within seconds,' he was quoted as saying by the state-run China Daily. Prior to the quake, about 2.1 million people in Sichuan were living in poverty incomes, the daily said, quoting official figures. The Government needs to pump in a minimum of 12 billion Yuan in the coming three years to ensure basic necessities in Sichuan, Gansu and Shaanxi provinces, the report said. A recovery plan is scheduled to be unveiled by the end of next month and local farmers, who earned a lion's share of their income by working as migrants, are being encouraged to take part in it.