The vibrant beats of dhol-tashas and chants of ‘Ganpati Bappa Morya’ faded into a sobering reality across Maharashtra this week as the 10-day annual Ganesh festival concluded on Friday and the State government on Saturday declared drought in 265 of the 358 talukas, including several parts of the Marathwada and Vidarbha regions.
In Kalamb town, Dharashiv district (Marathwada), the local administration scrambled ahead of idol immersion day. For idols taller than four feet, desperate pleas were made to reroute processions to a nearby stone quarry holding residual water. “We didn’t even have water to immerse the idols.
Because the local Manjara river and surrounding water bodies were completely dry due to a glaring monsoon deficit, civic authorities had to resort to filling temporary ponds using water tankers.
You can only imagine what is going to happen until the next monsoon,” said Balaji Adsul, a Kalamb resident.
The crisis extends far beyond a single town. The severity is starkly reflected in reservoir levels. 20 out of 36 districts in Maharashtra have recorded deficient rainfall, according to India Meteorological Department data. Marathwada dams are currently sitting at just 46% capacity compared to 81% at this time last year, while those in Amravati division in Vidarbha hace dropped to 64% from 85%.
