North Maharashtra has witnessed significant agricultural losses due to unseasonal rain, which affected crops over 11,318 hectares, impacting around 17,000 farmers across 271 villages in Nashik, Dhule, Jalgaon, and Nandurbar districts.

According to officials from the state agriculture department, Nashik district experienced the highest damage with 5,800 hectares affected, followed by Dhule with 3,024 hectares, Jalgaon with 2,116 hectares, and Nandurbar with 378 hectares.

The onion crop bore the brunt, suffering damage across 5,400 hectares, including 5,100 hectares in Nashik alone.

State Agriculture Minister Manikrao Kokate assured farmers of compensation during his visit to Nashik city on Ram Navami, Sunday. Besides onions, the unseasonal showers that hit the region on April 2 and 3 also ravaged crops like wheat, gram, maize, jowar, and bajra.

In Nashik, the damage spanned 5,800 hectares across 103 villages, affecting 8,383 farmers. Satana taluka was the worst-hit area with 4,437 hectares of crops destroyed in 85 villages, impacting 5,806 farmers. Malegaon taluka also reported damage over 1,180 hectares.

Dhule district saw crop damage across 3,024 hectares in 104 villages, impacting 3,933 farmers. The affected crops included onions, maize, bajra, and wheat, with Sindkheda and Dhule talukas reporting the most damage—1,971 hectares and 965 hectares, respectively.

In Jalgaon, the unseasonal rain affected 2,116 hectares across 60 villages, impacting 4,116 farmers. Nandurbar district reported damage over 378 hectares in four villages, affecting 577 farmers.

Source: Times of India