Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar : Anxiety is mounting across Marathwada’s farmlands after Aug brought just 56mm of rain, creating a 71% regional deficit and leaving farmers grappling with uncertainty amid a prolonged dry spell.
The eight-district region had endured a similarly disappointing Aug in 2023, when it received only 28% of the expected rainfall. In sharp contrast, Aug last year had delivered a deluge, recording a surplus of 153%, official data showed.
Since June 1, Marathwada has recorded 383mm of rainfall, leaving the region with an overall monsoon deficit of 26% so far. Official figures showed that kharif sowing had fallen short by nearly 3.6 lakh hectares compared to the average area planted over the past five years, largely due to the delayed monsoon onset.
In Beed district, farmer Dnyandev Nehrale said black gram and other standing crops were struggling to withstand the moisture stress. The impact on kharif yields now seems inevitable,” Nehrale said. For thousands of farmers, the erratic monsoon has become a matter of survival. “Barring a few scattered showers, Aug was practically dry. We have no means of artificial irrigation and are feeling helpless. The rainfall shortfall has already taken a toll on agricultural operations.
K K Dakhore, agricultural meteorologist at Vasantrao Naik Marathwada Agricultural University in Parbhani, said parts of the region were likely to receive light to moderate rainfall from Sept 3.
Till then, farmers with access to irrigation should provide protective watering and adopt other measures to minimise crop stress,” Dakhore said. Amid the gloom, however, there is a glimmer of hope. “If IMD forecast materialises, these showers could breathe new life into kharif crops across Marathwada.