This year’s drought cannot be called worse than the one in 1972: SANDRP

While the Maharashtra government is crying hoarse about this year’s drought surpassing the one in 1972 and farmers are cutting off their crops and digging deeper than ever for water, an analysis based on rainfall patterns blames it on poor long-term vision and unequal water distribution. With 3,712 major, minor and medium projects, Maharashtra has the highest number of dams in the country; yet its irrigation coverage was 17.9 per cent in 2009-10. Its projects are plagued with delays and cost overruns, and a special team headed by Madhav Chitale is investigating them.