Sugarcane, which is grown by no more than 1.1 million farmers, consumes 70 per cent of water available in Maharashtra for irrigation. In contrast, about 10 million jowar, pulses and oilseeds farmers get only 10 per cent of irrigation water, points out Abhishek Waghmare.
Maharashtra's Marathwada region is facing a severe drought due to inadequate rainfall for two successive years. The task before the state government -- to effectively implement relief and rehabilitation measures --is huge. In an interview with Sanjay Jog, Higher and Technical Education Minister Rajesh Tope, who is also a member of the state Cabinet Committee of Ministers on Implementation of Drought Relief Measures, speaks of the gravity of the situation
Maharashtra Assembly Deputy Speaker Vasant Purke on Tuesday suspended Shiv Sena legislator Om Raje Nimbalkar for lifting the mace from the speaker's table in protest against a minister's reply on the acute water scarcity in Osmanabad city of Marathwada region.
Latur district by trains in the next 15 days while prohibitory orders were clamped near water supply spots in Parbhani town to prevent any violence as authorities grapple with drought in the worst-hit Marathwada region of Maharashtra.
Lok Sabha elections can take place in November, BJP President Rajnath Singh said and asked partymen to be prepared for them.
A day after reporting 4,092 COVID-19 cases, highest single-day tally in more than a month, Maharashtra saw the daily count fall on Monday but it remained above 3,000 for the sixth straight day as the state government termed the situation as 'alarming' and warned of 'harsh decisions' after the recent spike.
The struggle for water in the drought-hit Jalna district of Maharashtra through eyes of rediff.com's Uttam Ghosh.
Heavy rains continued to lash Mumbai and neighbouring Thane from 11 am on Monday.
Union Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh passed away at a hospital in Chennai on Tuesday after suffering from multiple organ failure.
Over 200 teachers and students have been working for the last six months to port all projects that have been developed under the National Mission on Education through ICT over the last three years on Aakash-2.
Fadnavis said they also discussed the short- and long-term measures to tackle drought situation.
Opposition leader in the legislative council Vinod Tawde, alleged that the local hand in terrorism has been exposed after Abu Jundal's arrest.
The heat wave is the result of an anti-cyclone over Pakistan and western Rajasthan, the impact of which is being felt across the northern plains.
Shiv Sena workers on Friday assaulted and blackened the face of an RTI activist at Latur in Marathwada region, after he "exposed" an illegal construction case.
Maharashtra's opening batsman Vijay Zol has smashed an unbeaten 451 against Assam in a Under-19 Cooch Behar cricket match in Nasik.
After a making a slow progress, the southwest monsoon is expected to gain momentum and advance further into several parts of drought-hit Maharashtra and central India.
He said the first decision of the cabinet was to approve Rs 20 crore fund for conserving Raigad Fort, which was the capital of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
A 'water train' with 10 wagons carrying water for parched Latur in Marathwada region, which is battling the worst drought ever, on Monday left from Miraj in western Maharashtra.
The Jaldoot train supplying water from Miraj town to Latur in Marathwada on Monday made its 111th and last trip.
The Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi has called for the statewide shutdown to protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the proposed National Register of Citizens. Barring stray incidents of stone pelting and attempt to disrupt road traffic in Mumbai, there was not much impact of the bandh in the metropolis.
'We are not promising prosperity to these villagers. Instead, the focus is on self-sufficiency.'
Of 650 billion cubic metres of water available for irrigation nationwide, 15 per cent, or 100 BCM of water, is used by sugarcane , which is planted on no more than 2.5 per cent of India's farmland
The cyclone would bring light to moderate rains at most places and 'heavy to very heavy downpour' at some places on November 6.
Professionals, including doctors, engineers, farmers and industrialists, from various sections of Kolhapur, Sangli and Belgaum in Karnataka have made primary bookings for 180 Mercedes Benz cars from a Pune dealer, B U Bhandari, who was also responsible for the Aurangabad deal.
'Four years ago, when Gadkari was BJP president, Fadnavis was president of the state BJP, I had gone on a fast unto death demanding separate statehood for Vidarbha.' 'They had come to meet me and promised that once the party comes to power at the Centre and in the state, we will get separate statehood.' 'Four years have passed, but no change is seen on the ground.'
The Bollywood star is all ready to be the face of Maharashtra government's initiative -- 'Jalyukta Shivar Abhiyan', a water conservation project
Heavy to very heavy rains are expected in Maharashtra, Gujarat, west Madhya Pradesh and Goa in the next couple of days, the India Meteorological Department said.
President Pranab Mukherjee on Friday accepted the resignation of Minister of State for Consumer Affairs and Food and Public Distribution, Raosaheb Dadarao Danve, from the Union Council of Ministers.
Streets in localities like Hindmata, Dadar, Sion, King's Circle and Wadala are waterlogged. Suburban trains were running slow when reports last came in.
Local officials used 10,000 litres water for the helipad at Belkund village where the minister paid a visit to review the drought and water scarcity relief measures on Friday.
Nearly 21 per cent of the country has received "deficient" rainfall till July 31, the India Meteorological Department on Monday said.
Former corporator Yashodhar Phanse posed as Shiv Sena MLA Gautam Chabukswar and visited the constituency of Chabukswar, after party chief Uddhav Thackeray had directed all MLAs of the drought hit areas to meet farmers.
A Right to Information activist who was in the forefront in exposing corruption in Public Distribution System, foodgrain and fuel distribution in the Marathwada region has been found dead in Nanded.
Kanhaiya Kumar is India's latest political rockstar. More so in Mumbai, where his address this evening gave Mumbaikars a glimpse of the heydays of the Communist movement in the city of textiles mills and mill workers.
This was not Sharad Pawar or Prithviraj Chavan speaking. It was Uddhav Thackeray, the undisputed chief of the Shiv Sena!
After nine trips by a 10-wagon water train, a 50-wagon water train carrying 25 lakh litre water was later pressed into service.
Chandrakant Khaire said his party -- the partner of the Bharatiya Janata Party in the National Democratic Alliance - was not consulted on the decision of NDA MPs sacrificing 23 days pay to protest the disruptions in Parliament.
Several states are likely to witness heat wave conditions, the India Meteorological Department said in its summer forecast for the season (March to May).
Modi said he was shocked that such voices are being raised for political gains in the land of Shivaji Maharaj.
Several parts of north and west India reeled under scorching heat wave with the temperature touching 50 degree Celsius in Rajasthan's Churu district on Tuesday, even as the meteorological department predicted very heavy rainfall in Assam and Meghalaya till May 28.
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