Former Union minister Sharad Pawar on Friday cited poor rainfall and requested the Maharashtra authorities to declare a drought as a result of El Niño impact, which is primarily related to a weak monsoon and below-normal rain in India. He sought a complete reduction bundle for farmers and the agricultural inhabitants.
In a letter to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, Pawar sought not less than ₹50,000 per hectare for farmers and ₹25,000 for each farm labour household. He known as for a direct farm mortgage waiver and recent crop loans. Pawar argued that the federal government mustn’t await formal drought evaluation standards when elements of the state are going through extreme situations.
A crop harm evaluation is scheduled to start on October 5 as per the Nationwide Catastrophe Response Pressure tips.
Pawar mentioned insufficient rainfall had broken soybean, cotton, bajra, maize, tur, moong and urad crops in 31 of the 36 districts. He added that pest and illness assaults had additionally elevated. Pawar warned the state of affairs may additional irritate issues associated to ingesting water and fodder.
Pawar sought direct monetary help to guard the agricultural financial system. He requested the federal government to deal with a rising debt burden on farmers. “The mortgage waiver scheme must be applied instantly, and crop loans must be made out there directly.”
He sought a rise within the incentive for farmers who frequently repay their loans from ₹50,000 to ₹1 lakh. He known as for together with farmers who took crop loans in 2025-26 and defaulted within the loan-waiver scheme.
Pawar demanded retrospective implementation of the ₹1 premium scheme and restoration of farmer-friendly triggers that had earlier been excluded from the crop insurance coverage. He sought instant disbursal of the ₹17,000 per hectare help introduced for crop losses attributable to unseasonal rains final 12 months.
“Particular schemes must be applied by way of the Employment Assure Scheme in drought-like areas, together with agriculture and water-conservation works,” Pawar mentioned. He added that tanker preparations must also be made to guard orchards.
Pawar demanded instant surveys of villages going through drinking-water shortages. He mentioned fodder camps must be opened based mostly on demand. Pawar mentioned ingesting water and veterinary companies must be ensured for livestock.
Pawar cited the uneven rainfall deficit and information to underline the severity of the state of affairs. He mentioned Marathwada recorded a 69% rain shortfall from June to August. Pawar added the deficit was 61% in Vidarbha and 33% in Konkan. Components of western and northern Maharashtra reported rainfall deficits of as much as 28%.
Pawar referred to information exhibiting the rainfall shortfall coincided with a contraction within the space below sowing in some areas. In Vidarbha, the world sown by the top of August fell from 50.04 lakh hectares final 12 months to round 47.5 lakh hectares this 12 months. In Marathwada, the sown space dropped from 48.21 lakh hectares to 46.19 lakh hectares over the identical interval.
Pawar cited World Meteorological Organisation information to flag the potential of the El Niño phenomenon exerting a larger affect within the coming years, saying its results may turn into extra pronounced from 2027.
A presentation made earlier than the state Cupboard on Tuesday mentioned 20 of 36 districts recorded a rainfall deficit of not less than 20% in the course of the monsoon. Many areas didn’t get any rain for over 30 consecutive days, damaging Kharif crops and worsening the water disaster.
The presentation mentioned Maharashtra obtained 632.5 mm of rainfall in the course of the monsoon towards its common monsoon rainfall of 866.4 mm, a deficit of 27%. Twenty districts recorded a rainfall deficit of upwards of 20%. Affected areas included six of eight districts within the drought-prone Marathwada area, and 4 out of 5 districts within the Amaravati division, a farmer suicide-prone space.
Pawar flagged the potential of worsening power-supply issues. He sought a particular drive to finish repairs of defective transformers and stop extended load-shedding.