Greenery on farmland eludes Dharwad, Kalghatagi from getting drought tag

Dharwad: The inclusion of four taluks – Hubballi, Hubballi Rural, Navalgund and Annigeri – in Dharwad district in the second list of drought-affected taluks has brought some relief to distressed farmers. However, exclusion of two taluks – Dharwad and Kalghatagi – has drawn criticism from farming community.The state government has classified four taluks of the district as severely drought-hit while dropping out two taluks, which also recorded significant rainfall deficit, from its second list.Farmer leaders Shrishailgouda Kamatar and Mallikarjun Balangoudar said that the green cover in the agricultural fields of these two taluks has worked against securing the drought-hit status. The kharif season is crucial for farmers as it accounts for a major share of sowing and crop production. This year, farmers went ahead with sowing, expecting good rainfall. But, June turned out to be exceptionally dry, severely affecting crop growth. The subsequent rainfall helped the crops maintain their green cover and continue growing but was insufficient for pod formation. This, the farmer leaders said, resulted in the fields appearing healthy despite significant crop losses.Farmers who cultivated green gram, black gram, soybean, maize, groundnut and cotton were among the worst affected. Though green gram and black gram harvested over the past month have recorded at least a 30% decline in yield, Dharwad, known for pulse cultivation, has not been included in the drought-hit list, Balangoudar said.He said Dharwad and Kalghatagi are among more than 60 taluks in the state experiencing what farmers describe as a ‘green drought’. While the fields appear green and vegetation remains dense, moisture stress has affected crop yields, he said.Moreover, the government used satellite imagery to assess the severity of drought. Since the images showed substantial green cover in Dharwad and Kalghatagi, the two taluks were left out of the drought list, he said.The government should recognise the situation as a ‘green drought’ in the two taluks and announce a special relief package for affected farmers, he demanded.Kamatar said the rainfall pattern in Dharwad taluk showed a significant decline compared with 2023. While all 223 taluks in the state were declared drought-hit in 2023, only 124 taluks have been included in the current list, he said.Official statistics show that Dharwad taluk received 1,009 mm of rainfall between June and September in 2022-23. The figure fell to 642 mm in 2023-24, when the taluk was declared drought-hit. It increased to 711 mm in 2024-25 and further to 995 mm in 2025-26. However, the taluk has received only 411 mm of rainfall so far this year and has still not been included in the drought-hit list.Farmers and leaders have therefore demanded that all taluks in the district be included in the drought-hit list.39% deficit rainfallAccording to the officials of Agriculture Department the rainfall deficit is a key indicator for declaring a taluk or district drought-hit under the Centre’s guidelines. Dharwad district recorded a 23% rainfall deficit in June 45% in July and 50% in August resulting in an average deficit of 39% for the district the officials said.MLA to meet CMMLA Vinay Kulkarni said he had visited several fields in his constituency and noticed moisture stress that had affected crop yield.The green cover in the fields has worked against the taluk in securing drought-hit status. Hence he would meet the chief minister and explain the ground reality to him soon he added.

Source: Deccan Herald