Karnataka's drought losses are approaching Rs 46,000 crore, according to the state's second memorandum to the central government, which covers 177 of its 217 drought-declared taluks. Once the rest are assessed, including 40 taluks added as recently as 1 October, the state expects the total to rise to between Rs 50,000 crore and Rs 60,000 crore.
Deputy Chief Minister and Revenue Minister G. Parameshwara, who leads the state's response, visited drought-hit fields in Sindhanur taluk of Raichur district on 8 October. He said he had never seen a drought this severe in forty years of public life. In Kalamangi village he inspected a tur (pigeon pea) crop that had stayed about two feet tall, dried out and produced no grain, an outcome he said was repeated across the state.
Without waiting for central funds, Karnataka has announced Rs 1,250 crore in immediate state aid and a payment of Rs 2,500 per farmer from its own resources. Three central assessment teams, drawn from the ministries of Agriculture and Environment among others, visited the state from 3 October and finished a first round by 6 October, checking the state's figures in Tumakuru, Chitradurga, Davanagere, north Karnataka and the Mysuru region.
Maharashtra is also in trouble. It declared drought in 265 talukas in late September, mainly in Marathwada (Latur, Beed, Dharashiv, Nanded, Parbhani, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar) and Vidarbha. Soybean, maize and cotton are the worst hit, and officials estimate at least a quarter of standing crops in Marathwada were damaged after a dry spell of about 45 days.
Global Agriculture writes that a near-total loss of tur in Karnataka could tighten India's supply of pulses and push dal prices up into winter, while Maharashtra's soybean and cotton losses could dent oilseed and fibre output. Farmers in both states will now rely more on the rabi season to recover income.
Photo: Nanditha Gogate, WELL Labs / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Source: Global Agriculture
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