El Niño effect? Maharashtra declares drought across 265 talukas as rain deficit grips 74% of state

Facing a severe deficit in monsoon rainfall and prolonged dry spells, the Maharashtra government officially declared drought across 265 out of the state’s 358 talukas, bringing nearly 74% of its administrative sub-divisions under emergency relief protocol.

The declaration followed an extensive review and personal visits to affected regions by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. According to a Government Resolution issued based on a comprehensive assessment report from the Maharashtra Agriculture Commissioner, 265 talukas met the "Trigger-1" criteria — defined as a continuous dry spell of at least 21 days without significant rain during the monsoon season.

The monsoon shortfall hit agricultural regions especially hard, with the state recording an overall rainfall deficit of 18.8 percent between June 1 and mid-September.

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Several districts in the Marathwada, Pune, and Nashik divisions faced deficits hovering around 30%, while key agrarian districts like Dharashiv, Amravati, Solapur, and Latur experienced precipitation shortfalls reaching up to 50%. The crisis severely damaged Kharif season crops, including soybean, cotton, millet, maize, tur, moong, and urad.

To cushion the blow on the farming community and rural daily wage earners, Chief Minister Fadnavis announced an immediate slate of relief measures and administrative directives:

• Debt & Tax Relief: Restructuring of existing crop loans, a complete stay on the recovery of agricultural loans, and concessions on land revenue payments.  
• Power Subsidies & Protection: Deferment and concessions on electricity bills for agricultural pumps, with an absolute ban on disconnecting power supplies for farmers' pumps in declared drought zones.  
• Educational Fee Waivers: Full exemption of examination fees for school and college students belonging to the affected talukas.  
• Water & Fodder Management: Immediate deployment of drinking water tankers to water-scarce villages, along with structured provisioning for cattle fodder and livestock care.  
• Employment Assistance: Relaxation of operational rules under the Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA) to scale up relief works and provide steady wages for landless labourers.  
• Ground Verification: Directives to all district collectors to immediately complete loss assessments (panchnamas), enforcing geotagged photos and GPS location tracking to ensure transparent compensation distribution.

With the monsoon running well below normal, concern is building over the impact on India’s farm economy and food prices. India is on course to record its driest monsoon in 17 years, with strengthening El Nino conditions curbing rainfall and raising worries over crop yields and inflation.

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The weak monsoon could hurt agricultural production, reduce rural incomes and push up food prices in the world’s fifth-largest economy. India receives nearly 70% of its annual rainfall from the June-to-September monsoon.