Pune drought compensation of ₹467.70 crore has been sought from the Maharashtra government for 4,77,842 farmers whose crops were damaged across 3,18,008 hectares in 10 talukas of Pune district during the kharif season.
The demand was submitted by Pune district collector Jitendra Dudi after the Agriculture Department completed crop damage assessments, known as panchnamas, in the affected areas. The report seeks ₹467,70,73,917 for the affected farmers. The state government is yet to decide whether to approve the amount.
Drought was initially declared in Bhor, Rajgad, Khed, Shirur, Baramati, Indapur, Daund and Purandar under Trigger One. Junnar and Ambegaon were subsequently included under Trigger Two. Following directions from the state government, the district administration began crop assessments across all 10 talukas.
Shirur recorded the largest damaged area, with crops affected across 55,138 hectares. Indapur followed with 51,734 hectares, while Baramati reported damage across 44,104 hectares. Shirur also had the highest number of affected farmers at 74,042, followed by 71,331 farmers in Indapur.
The Agriculture Department first submitted its assessment to the district administration. After the collector’s approval, the report was forwarded to the state government along with the compensation request. The assessment identifies the scale of crop loss, but the report does not state the compensation amount per farmer or per hectare.
The proposed assistance is linked to the state’s drought response across the notified talukas, where crop damage has affected both agricultural output and farm incomes. For the district administration, the next step depends on the state government’s decision on the requested allocation and the procedure for distributing any approved assistance.
Once the state government takes a decision, the process for sanctioning and transferring the compensation to eligible farmers will be determined. The report does not provide a timeline for the state’s decision or for the start of payments.
