Maharashtra is to buy Sugarcane from KarnatakaHome

To overcome the animal fodder shortage in drought-hit Marathwada, the Maharashtra government has decided to import sugarcane in bulk from the neighbouring state of Karnataka.

The massive loss of crops due to a poor monsoon has led to an acute fodder crisis across eight districts of Marathwada region. The drinking water crisis is being met with supply through 1,200 tankers.

In Osmanabad district, farming is done on a total of 3.5 lakh hectares. This year, however, sowing was done only on 1.9 lakh hectares due to water scarcity and lack of rain. Almost 1.5 lakh hectares failed to yield the desired harvest.

As a result, several lakh farmers are affected in the district, which is among the worst hit. The poor crop with stunted growth was not even useful to feed animals. “The daily requirement of fodder for 7.37 lakh animals in the district is 3,000 metric tonnes. If we calculate a month’s supply, it goes up to 30,000 MT. The long dry spell in the district has created acute shortage of fodder as even the wild grass have dried up,” said Osmanabad District Collector Prashant Narvawre.

Source: http://indianexpress.com/