Unseasonal Rains Hit Vidarbha and Marathwada; Crops Damaged, Districts Advised to Assess Losses

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar/Akola: Vidarbha and Marathwada have been hit by unseasonal rains in the last two days after the prevalence of heat waves in the last few days. Summer moong, groundnut, jowar, and wheat crops were damaged along with fruit crops like orange, lemon, chiku, mango, banana, papaya, and watermelon. The State Relief and Rehabilitation Department has directed the concerned district administrations to assess the damage.

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Several places in Marathwada received hailstorms on Wednesday night and Thursday. Jalna, Beed, and Latur districts received unseasonal rains accompanied by gusty winds on Thursday. In Hingoli, 40 herons fell into a well at Narsi Namdev Shivara.

The goats went to graze and...
Haribai Eknath Surnar, a woman who had taken her goats to graze at Bhaucha Tanda in Sonpeth taluka, died after being struck by lightning. A farmer's bull died after being struck by lightning in Shelgaon.

Rain in Vidarbha 
The rains that started in Vidarbha on Wednesday night continued on Thursday. Nagpur, Yavatmal, Wardha, Chandrapur, Gadchiroli, Akola, Washim and Buldana districts continued to receive rainfall on Thursday. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted rain and thundershowers in Vidarbha, including Nagpur, for the next three days.

Crop Loss in Western Varhad
Over 11,000 hectares of crops were damaged due to gusty winds and hailstorms in the Akola, Buldhana, and Washim districts of western Vidarbha on April 8 and 9. As many as 80 villages were affected by the rains.

Directed to immediately assess the damage

The Relief and Rehabilitation department has directed the concerned district administrations to conduct Panchnama as unseasonal rains in several parts of the state for the last two days have damaged various fruit crops, including mangoes. Many banana orchards have been destroyed in Jalgaon. 

Nagpur, Amravati, Buldana, Akola, Yavatmal, Bhandara in Vidarbha, Hingoli in Marathwada, Jalgaon in north Maharashtra, and parts of western Maharashtra have been affected by unseasonal rains. Unseasonal rains have been predicted in the state for the next two to three days.