17.5.19

Severe Drought in North Maharashtra

The drought situation in north Maharashtra is aggravating with the number of affected people increasing by over one lakh in just eight days.

According to the data provided by the Nashik divisional commissionerate, the population affected by the severe water scarcity in the five districts under it stood at 22.35 lakh on May 14, against 21.25 lakh on May 6. The government officials have not ruled out the possibility of the affected population increasing further as the monsoon is at least a month away. “The villages are facing severe water scarcity and the demand for water is constantly soaring, forcing us to increase the number of tankers during these eight days,” officials said. The number of villages facing water crisis has gone up to 4,785 from 4,500 during the period. Nashik, Ahmednagar and Jalgaon continue to be the worst affected districts of north Maharashtra.

“In Ahmednagar, the number of affected population has risen from 11.9 lakh on May 6 to 12.14 lakh on May 14. The local administration is constantly receiving demands for water tankers, especially in the southern parts of the district,” officials said.

The number of affected villages in the district has increased from 3,323 to 3,485. In Nashik, the affected population has soared to 5.58 lakh by May 14 from 5.1 lakh on May 6. And the number of tankers has swelled by 30 during the period.

“In Jalgaon district, the number of villages affected has increased from 172 on May 6 to 193 on May 14, while the number of tankers increased by 21,” officials said.

The status of Dhule and Nandurbar districts has remained unchanged during the period. The least number of affected villages are in Nandurbar. Officials said the local administration of the five districts were keeping a close tab on the drought scenario. “The administration is going all out to ensure that the affected villagers are provided water by tankers.”

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