This time the lack of rain in Maharashtra has increased the farmers’ worries. Crops were drying up in the fields and the glow of the upcoming festive season seemed to be fading. But ahead of Diwali, there has been news of a big relief for the state’s food industry. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’ government has decided to provide financial assistance to farmers suffering from severe drought. The government has announced that an advance amount of Rs 5,000 will be transferred to farmers’ bank accounts before Diwali.

In fact, many parts of the state are currently going through severe water crisis. Realizing the gravity of the situation, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis convened an important cabinet meeting at the Sahyadri Guest House in Mumbai. The main agenda of this meeting was to get the farmers out of this difficult time. It was decided in this meeting that it is most necessary to provide immediate relief to the drought affected farmers. As the festival of Diwali is around the corner, the government without any delay has released Rs. 5,000 has been approved to provide advance assistance.

Why was drought declared prematurely?

This time the government has also made a big change in its way of working. Usually the official declaration of drought in Maharashtra is made by the end of November. But this year the situation is so bad that the government had to break its tradition. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that in view of the current situation, the state government has declared drought in the month of October itself. Necessary Government Order i.e. GR has also been issued for this.

The government was well aware that the entire administrative process of drought took a lot of time. If the government had waited for the paperwork to be completed, farmers’ Diwali would have been ruined. Keeping this in mind, the Cabinet decided that all the procedures will be done later, first of all advance money will be sent to the farmers’ accounts so that they can celebrate their festival well.

Inclusion of 40 new taluks in drought affected list

The incidence of drought is increasing continuously. Based on the latest reports received by the government, 40 new talukas of Maharashtra have also been declared drought-hit. The situation in these areas is very bad. Crops are on the brink of destruction. The entire focus of the government is to provide early relief to the farmers of these areas. Strict instructions have been issued to the administration to avoid any negligence in the relief work.

Shinde kept his promise to the farmers

Deputy CM Eknath Shinde also expressed his thoughts on this important decision of the government. He clarified that the promises made by the government are being fulfilled at all costs. Shinde said that our government had already decided that we will not let the Diwali of the farmers of the state slip away. Under this commitment, it has been decided to deposit Rs 5,000 in the bank account. He also clarified that this is only an immediate relief. In the future, more financial assistance will be given to the farmers to compensate them for the losses.