📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / TerminatorMan2712
Agriculture
Maharashtra Cabinet Approves Drought‑Relief Panel and Green Project Initiative
✍️ newsonair.gov.in
🗓 25 Sep 2026, 01:47 AM
👁 13
The Maharashtra state cabinet has sanctioned a dedicated drought‑relief panel and outlined a new project aimed at mitigating water scarcity across the state.
Mumbai, September 24 (ANI) – The Maharashtra cabinet gave its nod to a specially constituted drought‑relief panel, signalling a coordinated response to the prolonged water shortage affecting large parts of the state. The panel, comprising senior officials from the agriculture, water resources and finance departments, will assess the severity of the drought, prioritize aid distribution and recommend short‑term measures such as cash assistance and crop‑insurance enhancements.
In addition to immediate relief, the cabinet approved a multi‑year project focused on augmenting water storage and recharge capacity. The plan includes constructing check‑dams, rejuvenating traditional water bodies and promoting micro‑irrigation techniques in vulnerable districts. Funding for the initiative will be drawn from the state’s disaster‑relief budget and central government schemes.
Chief Minister Eknath Shinde emphasized that the panel’s recommendations will be implemented within weeks to safeguard farmer livelihoods and prevent further agrarian distress. The government also urged local bodies and community groups to cooperate in the execution of the water‑conservation measures.
The move comes as Maharashtra grapples with below‑average monsoon rains and rising groundwater depletion, prompting urgent policy action to avert a full‑scale agricultural crisis.
In addition to immediate relief, the cabinet approved a multi‑year project focused on augmenting water storage and recharge capacity. The plan includes constructing check‑dams, rejuvenating traditional water bodies and promoting micro‑irrigation techniques in vulnerable districts. Funding for the initiative will be drawn from the state’s disaster‑relief budget and central government schemes.
Chief Minister Eknath Shinde emphasized that the panel’s recommendations will be implemented within weeks to safeguard farmer livelihoods and prevent further agrarian distress. The government also urged local bodies and community groups to cooperate in the execution of the water‑conservation measures.
The move comes as Maharashtra grapples with below‑average monsoon rains and rising groundwater depletion, prompting urgent policy action to avert a full‑scale agricultural crisis.