Rain Affected 3.80 Lakh Hectares Crop, 6 Lakh Farmers In Maharashtra

Crops on nearly 3.80 lakh hectares of land owned by over six lakh farmers have been damaged in the Marathwada region of Maharashtra due to excess rains and floods so far this year as per the preliminary survey, a report said on Wednesday.

A total of 46 people have died in rain-related incidents in Marathwada region, which comprises Aurangabad, Beed, Hingoli, Jalna, Latur, Nanded, Osmanabad and Parbhani, it said.

The revenue department has completed the survey of 1,73,717 hectares of land, which is 45.85 per cent of the total affected area, an official said.

The region received 462.3 mm rainfall till now this year as against the average of 296.2 mm. Till July 26, it recorded 156.08 per cent rainfall, a report issued by the divisional commissioner's office in Aurangabad said.

"As per the primary survey, 6.23 lakh farmers owning 3,78,866.19 hectares of land have been hit due to excess rains and floods across eight districts of Marathwada region. Nanded was the worst hit district, where 2,98,861.19 hectares of land was affected," it said.

A total of 660 animals perished in rain-related incidents in the region, it added.

As many as 182 circles in Marathwada have been hit by excess rains this monsoon. So far, 46 people have lost their lives in rain-related incidents, with 25 of them getting killed due to lightning strikes, 20 due to drowning, and one due wall collapse, the report said.

In Nanded district, 509 roads were affected due to heavy rains, where 12 water supply schemes, 460 bridges, 43 irrigation schemes also suffered severe damages. Besides that, primary health centres and other government buildings got damaged, the report said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)