Pune: State agriculture minister Dattatray Bharne on Thursday said declaration of drought in the state was imminent, as farmers were facing extreme distress due to severe crop losses.Bharne was speaking in his assembly constituency of Indapur, where he inaugurated an online portal to issue certificates to women farmers under the Maharashtra Women Farmers Empowerment Act 2026, which was passed by the Assembly a couple of months ago.Addressing the current agrarian crisis, Bharne said, “There is no doubt that a drought will be declared in the state. There was no rain at the start of the monsoon season in June. Although the state received good rainfall in July, there has been no sufficient rain activity across most districts for the last 40 to 50 days. Crops have been destroyed, and a drought declaration is now imminent.”The farm crisis was discussed during Tuesday’s state cabinet meeting, where chief minister Devendra Fadnavis reviewed the situation in every district. “The chief minister has already directed the agriculture and revenue department officials to collect data on crop damage. I will also be visiting five to six districts over the next few days. The govt will formulate a policy to ensure that every affected farmer receives the required assistance,” Bharne added.The agriculture minister emphasized that providing aid to affected crop farmers remains the top priority, after which financial assistance will also be extended to milk producers.Meanwhile, state revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, who was in Pune to visit prominent Ganesh mandals, said he prayed to Lord Ganesh for the strength to provide relief to distressed farmers. He said, “There are 18 to 19 districts currently facing a drought-like situation, and we are collecting detailed information on crop losses. Based on the severity of the drought, a comprehensive plan will be chalked out to provide timely aid to the farmers.”
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