The lack of rain has caused severe moisture stress during the crucial stages of flowering and pod formation, affecting the development and filling of grains, the district collectorate said in the report. Amid the dire situation, farmers are feeding dried plants from their fields to cattle, it said.

The Dharashiv district in central Maharashtra's Marathwada region did not receive rain for 80 days, which can cause crop loss in the range of 80 to 85 per cent, according to a government report.

The lack of rain has caused severe moisture stress during the crucial stages of flowering and pod formation, affecting the development and filling of grains, the district collectorate said in the report. Amid the dire situation, farmers are feeding dried plants from their fields to cattle, it said.

Dharashiv, earlier Osmanabad, received 310.7 mm of rainfall against the average expected rainfall of 603.1 mm, which is just 51.51 per cent.

The deficit in the district has reached 49.49 per cent, and the number of days when it didn't rain in most parts of the district has reached 80 till Sep 12, it said.

The average groundwater level in the district has dropped by 7.02 metres as compared to the average of the past five years, the report said.

In this Kharif season, 5.39 lakh hectares of land have come under cultivation, including soybean crop on 4.67 lakh hectares.

However, the crop has dried up in many areas and the surviving plants face severe moisture stress in the crucial period of "flowering and pod formation and grain filling", it said.

The loss of crops in the district can reach 80-85 per cent in this season, the report said, adding that farmers are using dried soybean plants as fodder for their cattle.

Maharashtra Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule had said on Monday that a drought-like situation had developed in 18 districts of the state due to inadequate rainfall.

He said nearly half of Maharashtra's farmers were currently facing a drought-like situation.

Source - https://www.mid-day.com