A low pressure area that has emerged in the Bay of Bengal and waiting to enter the land from east coast is once again threatening to inundate some more areas of already devastated Vidarbha during the next 48 to 72 hours. Rain is expected to increase in the region where raging waters of the Painganga river had left several villages water-logged for days. It’s the fifth flooding this year alone, leaving the people with no home and no crops.
Over 150 people have been killed in the heavy rains this year, which caused most of the rivers to overflow. Across the belt, 20 per cent of the crop has been destroyed.
The epicenter of the crisis is Yavatmal district where more than 60 per cent of the fields are water-logged. Yavatmal has seen over 50 farmer suicides this year. A fifth of them in the month of August alone, estimate Vidarbha Jana Andolan Samiti (VJAS), the farmers advocacy group.
Faced with growing unrest, the Maharashtra government announced a package of Rs 1934 crore for Vidarbha farmers weeks ago. The money, however, can be released only after the district administration estimates the damage done. The official survey is still incomplete.
In Washim, the official survey has estimated that 43,000 hectares of crop has been destroyed. Whereas the VJAS argues that the figure is almost twice as high, at more than 80,000 hectares.
