Jalgaon Jamod farmers seek drought declaration, warn of hunger strike

Scanty and erratic rainfall this year has badly damaged kharif crops for farmers in the Nimbhora Budruk and Kherda Khurd areas of Jalgaon Jamod taluka. Poor crop growth has left farmers facing financial distress.

Given the situation, farmers from Nimbhora Budruk and Kherda Khurd submitted a memorandum to the tehsildar on Tuesday. Their main demand is that the entire Jalgaon Jamod taluka be declared drought-hit. The farmers said that if their demands are not met, they will sit on an indefinite hunger strike in front of the tehsil office from September 28.

The memorandum also demands that a proposal to declare Jalgaon Jamod taluka drought-hit be sent to the government immediately. Farmers present included Amol Bahadare, Dnyaneshwar Khandare, Pandurang Ugale, Ramesh Deshmukh, Anand Suralkar, Anand Bude, Narayan Khandare, Vitthal Divde, Vilas Dawange, Ananta Konde, Prajwal Deshmukh, Dnyaneshwar Ambhore, Gajanan Bunde, Dashrath Ugale, Bhimrao Wankhade and Sagar Sapkal, among other farmers.

The farmers raised several other demands in their memorandum. They want a panchnama of crop losses conducted and immediate financial assistance given to farmers. They want the benefits of government schemes, drought relief concessions and existing government schemes extended to all farmers. Given the water shortage and the severe fodder problem for livestock, they want urgent measures taken. They also want the 2025-26 crop insurance paid to farmers without delay.

A copy of the memorandum has also been sent to the Buldhana district collector and the Jalgaon Jamod sub-divisional officer. Farmers are already struggling with difficult conditions, and if the administration does not act soon, their anger could surface as a hunger strike from September 28. The entire taluka is now watching to see what decision the administration takes on the matter.