Natural calamities hit crops on 605 lakh hectares in 9 years in Maharashtra; Rs 54,600 cr relief paid

Maharashtra has lost crops on more than 605 lakh hectares of farmland to heavy rains hailstorms and droughts in the past nine years with more than Rs 54600 crore being paid as compensation to the affected farmers according to government data reported news agency PTIThe state has witnessed a significant rise in excessive rainfall since 2019 with the current kharif season already recording severe losses said an official from the state agriculture department on ThursdayThe cumulative figure of loss of crops on agricultural land is 60526 lakh hectares It is also true that some areas or villages have been hit multiple times in the last nine years The total assistance paid to farmers over the past nine years amounts to Rs 5467917 crore said an official from the agriculture department reported PTIAccording to the data reviewed after the recent spell of torrential rains in Marathwada every year barring the 201617 kharif season has seen farmers facing some form of natural disasterIn 201516 unseasonal rains and two episodes of hailstorms coupled with drought conditions destroyed crops on 5650 lakh hectares Drought accounted for the most damage and 21 districts were severely affected the official saidTwo spells of unseasonal rains and hailstorms damaged crops on 685 lakh hectares in the next financial yearIn the fiscal 201718 between March and October unseasonal rains and hailstorms hit several districts with seven districts suffering the most In the same year crops on 4443 lakh hectares were damaged according to the data compiled by the agriculture department reported PTIMultiple disasters struck in 201819 In February hailstorms and heavy rains destroyed crops on 291 lakh hectares across 19 districts while unseasonal rains in AprilMay affected 70000 hectares Drought in 26 districts caused losses on 8576 lakh hectares reported PTIExcessive rains in June that year across 13 districts damaged 187 lakh hectares with floods affecting Sangli and Kolhapur districts In Jalgaon district storms and rain destroyed banana plantations on 8000 hectares within 21 days the official saidThe state faced cyclones Kyarr and Maha along with unseasonal showers and excessive rainfall in 201920 Cyclonic storms alone damaged crops and orchards on 9657 lakh hectares while drought in Ambejogai Beed and Dharashiv ruined 1 lakh hectares Between October and November unseasonal rains cyclones and downpours destroyed another 9453 lakh hectaresIn 2021 excessive rains during monsoon months and floods damaged 4185 lakh hectares in 34 districts Between February and June unseasonal rains hailstorms and strong winds destroyed 379 lakh hectares In the Nagpur division floods on August 3031 and September 1 hit six districts damaging crops on 102 lakh hectares reported PTIHailstorms rains and gales in December 2020 and February 2021 damaged 47000 hectares of crops while MarchMay and December saw 268 lakh hectares destroyed July floods ruined 443 lakh hectares AugustSeptember floods affected 4838 lakh hectares and excessive rains and winds in October damaged 207 lakh hectaresThe trend since 2019 shows that excessive rainfall has caused major farm losses In JuneAugust 2019 13 districts were hit while 34 districts faced crop losses in OctoberNovemberIn 2020 excessive rains and floods battered 34 districts between June and October In 2021 JulySeptember floods and rains affected 5281 lakh hectares across 53 districts SeptemberOctober of that year saw 3279 lakh hectares hit in 34 districts reported PTIDrought in 15 districts damaged 2266 lakh hectares in 2023 while excessive rains from March to December across 34 districts affected 2950 lakh hectares Various weather phenomena damaged 5153 lakh hectares in 2024 said officialsGovernment records show disbursal of Rs 419062 crore in compensation in 201516 followed by Rs 60283 crore next year Rs 362250 crore 201718 Rs 621834 crore 201819 Rs 775406 crore 201920 Rs 492378 crore in 202021 Rs 564744 crore in 202122 Rs 863744 crore 2022iquest23 Rs 642163 crore 202324 and Rs 666051 crore last fiscalWith inputs from PTI