Devabhau — the True Leader of Farmers

 

Farmers suffered devastating losses due to excessive rainfall that occurred in some parts of the state in September. The heavy rain and flooding completely destroyed ready to harvest cash crops like soybean. Cattle such as cows and buffaloes, which help in getting additional income to the farmers, were washed away in the floods. Thousands of people lost everything as water from the sudden floods entered their homes and swept away everything.

Even the land of thousands of farmers was literally scraped away. The farmers became completely helpless due to this unprecedented crisis. Farmers were left wondering how they will manage their next meal after their hard-earned crops were destroyed in devastating crisis. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis were the only ray of hope for these farmers. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis immediately distributed a fund of 2,200 crore as urgent relief to the farmers.

There is a certain procedure for submitting a proposal for assistance to the central government by collecting the information of damage. Completion of this procedure would have taken a long time. Therefore, Devendra Fadnavis immediately announced a relief package of around 32,000 crore. This aid announced for the farmers is historic in many ways. No other government in the country has ever provided aid to farmers in distress to such an extent. Devendra Fadnavis has planned to ensure that the state government’s aid will be deposited into the farmers’ accounts before Diwali under any circumstances.

Chief Minister Fadnavis has minutely considered various aspects of the losses suffered by the farmers while announcing this relief package. Farmers in Maharashtra are facing a devastating calamity of excessive rainfall and floods for the first time since the formation of the state. Primary estimates show that crops over 68 lakhs hectares have been damaged due to this calamity. Farmers in 29 districts and 253 talukas of the state have been badly affected. Farmers in Maharashtra have never experienced crises such as farmland being washed away, homes being flooded and everything being swept away.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has prepared a relief package considering the magnitude of the crisis. That is why, Devendra Fadnavis has undoubtedly become a ‘Devabhau’ in true sense for the farmers in the state.

If we examine Devendra Fadnavis’s tenure as Chief Minister since 2014, it is evident that he has been a saviour of the farmers in the state. Direct financial aid will be provided in varying amounts for damage to dryland, irrigated land, and orchard areas under the state government’s package. Farmers having dryland will be given compensation of Rs 18,500 per hectare.

Farmers having seasonal irrigated land will receive financial assistance of Rs 27,500 per hectare, while farmers having fully irrigated land will be given Rs 32,500 per hectare. This financial assistance will be deposited directly into the bank accounts of the farmers. As a result, farmers do not need to visit the government officials or public representatives repeatedly. The Fadnavis government has clarified that farmers who have crop insurance, as well as those who have suffered total losses, will receive an additional assistance of Rs 17,000.

Which means that farmers having dryland will receive assistance of Rs. 35,000 per hectare, whereas farmers having irrigated land will receive Rs. 50,000 per hectare from the Fadnavis government. The state government has announced a fund of Rs 18,000 crore for agricultural losses. In many places, there have been incidents of land being washed away due to excessive rainfall.

Farmers whose land has been scraped away will be provided with an assistance of Rs. 47,000 per hectare. Along with that, farmers whose land has been scraped away will receive an extra assistance of Rs 3 lakh per hectare through the MGNREGA scheme. Many people’s wells have been buried due to excessive rainfall and floods. Those farmers will be provided with aid of Rs 30,000 for buried wells. Infrastructure facilities such as roads, bridges and electric poles have suffered severe damage due to the floods.

A fund of Rs. 10,000 crore has been announced for the repair of damaged infrastructure facilities. Assistance of Rs. 37,500 will be provided for each dairy cattle that has been washed away, Rs. 32,000 for each draft animal and Rs. 100 per chicken to farmers engaged in poultry farming as a supplementary occupation. Many houses were damaged due to the floods.

In some places, houses were completely destroyed. Such houses will be reconstructed under PM Awas Yojana of the Central Government. Irrigated fruit farmers will be provided assistance at the rate of Rs 27,000 per hectare. Financial assistance of Rs 50,000 will be provided to the shopkeepers affected by the floods. All the concessions usually granted by the government during drought and scarcity situations will be provided during this crisis as well. The Fadnavis government has also announced decisions such as waiving examination fees for students, providing assistance for damages to electric pumps.

The government provides financial assistance only if there is rainfall of at least 65 millimetres during a natural calamity. This condition has also been removed by the Fadnavis government this time. Although no government can fully compensate the farmers for the financial and psychological distress they have faced, Devendra Fadnavis has tried to provide as much assistance as possible through the government.

Therefore, Devendra Fadnavis has become ‘Devabhau’ in true sense for the farmers of the state. Devendra Fadnavis announced a loan waiver scheme under the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Shetkari Sanman Yojana in 2017. The needy farmers greatly benefited from that scheme. This crisis has given the opposition an excuse to criticize the Fadnavis government. However, the opposition has been stunned by the historic assistance announced by the Fadnavis government, as the Fadnavis government has provided help surpassing all their expectations.

 

(Article Pre-Published in Times of India Online – 13 October, 2025) 

Keshav Upadhye, Chief Spokesperson