Area of state affected by drought rises to 73 per cent
A cabinet panel on relief and rehabilitation adds 220 additional circles to list of drought-affected regions
3 min read
In 2018, drought was declared in 151 tehsils initially. Later 268 circles were included in the list. It was done after a number of elected representatives complained about their respective areas being ignored. Similarly in 2023, opposition MLAs had criticised the state government for including only areas under ruling MLAs and ignoring the opposition's constituencies.
(Representational Image)More than 73 per cent of Maharashtra is now considered drought-affected after a cabinet sub-committee on Relief and Rehabilitation on Tuesday decided to include an additional 220 circles in the list of drought-affected regions. This comes following continuous demands for the same from different parts of the state.
Two months ago, the Maharashtra government had announced a drought in 229 tehsils, which has 1,290 circles. With the decision from the sub-committee, a total of 1,510 circles out of 2,068 are now drought-affected, covering more than 73 per cent of the state.
While the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) will be used for relief and rehabilitation in 40 tehsils (269 circles) announced in October 2023, the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) will be used for the newly added drought-affected region. “Different parts of the state are facing a difficult situation. There are issues related to the availability of water and fodder. The government will ensure aid is received by all,” said Maharashtra Relief and Rehabilitation minister Anil Patil. Under the present revenue administration, each district is divided into subdivisions for administrative convenience. Each division may consist of 4 to 5 talukas. These talukas are further subdivided into revenue circles and each circle has around six to eight villages.
Due to stringent criteria such as specifications about the scarcity of rainfall, paucity of available groundwater, remote sensing criteria, vegetation index, moisture of soil, area under sowing and condition of crops, only 40 tehsils were declared in the list of drought-affected areas in the first phase in October. In the previous of meeting of the cabinet sub-committee, it was decided a report will be sought from districts about circles lacking installed rain gauge machines. “The report from the district collector was to be vetted by the Agriculture department and based on that, further decision about giving benefits was to be taken,” the minutes of the meeting stated.
On the basis of this, 220 new circles without rain gauge machines were included in the list of drought-affected areas. The areas will now receive benefits such as restructuring of crop loans, concessions in revenue, stays on the recovery of farm loans, 33.5 per cent concession on the present power bills of agricultural pumps, exam fee waivers for school and college students, concessions in norms for employment guarantee scheme, availability of water tankers and a guarantee that agri pumps won’t be disconnected due to non-payment of bills.
In 2018, drought was declared in 151 tehsils initially. Later 268 circles were included in the list. It was done after a number of elected representatives complained about their respective areas being ignored. Similarly in 2023, opposition MLAs had criticised the state government for including only areas under ruling MLAs and ignoring the opposition’s constituencies.
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