India: Drought places Maharashtra grape growers on the edge
For the rest of the growers the season is keeping them on a knife edge. its touch and go and depends altogether on whether or not it rains sufficiently over the coming two weeks.
The areas most severely affected are parts of the Sangli-Solapur-Osmanabad belt where even the mandatory April pruning has not been done. "There was no pruning done in areas such as Latur, Jat, and parts of Osmanabad due to water shortage. These people are in trouble," said a local expert, who wished to go unnamed.
The farmers whose yield this year depends on rain coming soon, are those from Nashik, which is usually rich in water, but where, this year, the reservoirs have run dry.
over the past few years the rains in Nashik have been delayed, but this year it is possible they will not come at all, something that the people of the region have never experienced before.
With around two lakh acres under cultivation, Maharashtra produces over 90 per cent of the country’s grapes. Nashik, Sangli, Solapur and Pune are the major grape-producing zones. The season stretches from October to April, and the total production of fruit in the State stood at around 15 lakh tonnes last year.
Source: thehindubusinessline.com
