In the first week of April, unseasonal rain and hailstorms have destroyed crops on some 42,000 hectares in Maharashtra. Horticultural crops such as grape, pomegranate, cashew, mango, orange, and banana were severely affected. Of the 36 districts in the state, 24 were badly affected; cumulative losses could run into Rs.50 bln (€550 mln).
Primary information gathered by the State’s relief and rehabilitation department showed that crops on an estimated 42,000 hectares were damaged. Nashik was the worst affected district, where crops on 8,400 hectares in 145 villages are entirely damaged. Ahmednagar was the second most affected district, where crops over 7,305 hectares were totally destroyed. Akola in the Vidarbha region suffered crop losses over 5,859 hectares, while Dharashiv in the Marathwada region lost crops on 2,895 hectares.
