📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Sanket Oswal
Politics
Congress alleges Maharashtra drought list favours ministers' constituencies
✍️ Mid-Day
🗓 29 Sep 2026, 02:32 PM
👁 33
The Congress party has charged that the recently released Maharashtra drought list disproportionately includes areas represented by ruling party ministers, suggesting political bias.
The Maharashtra state government released an official list of districts and talukas classified as drought‑affected earlier this week, a document that determines eligibility for relief funds and scheme benefits.
The opposition Congress party immediately challenged the list, alleging that it was skewed to favour constituencies represented by ministers of the ruling coalition. Party leaders said the selection criteria appeared to prioritize political considerations over objective drought severity indicators.
State officials have not commented on the specific allegations, but they reiterated that the list was compiled based on meteorological data, groundwater levels and crop loss assessments. The government maintains that the classification will guide the distribution of water‑saving schemes and financial assistance.
The controversy comes amid a prolonged dry spell that has strained agriculture across large parts of Maharashtra, prompting farmer protests and calls for more transparent relief mechanisms.
The opposition Congress party immediately challenged the list, alleging that it was skewed to favour constituencies represented by ministers of the ruling coalition. Party leaders said the selection criteria appeared to prioritize political considerations over objective drought severity indicators.
State officials have not commented on the specific allegations, but they reiterated that the list was compiled based on meteorological data, groundwater levels and crop loss assessments. The government maintains that the classification will guide the distribution of water‑saving schemes and financial assistance.
The controversy comes amid a prolonged dry spell that has strained agriculture across large parts of Maharashtra, prompting farmer protests and calls for more transparent relief mechanisms.