Maharashtra politics shifts focus from campaign to hailstorm

MUMBAI: A central team of observers on Thursday visited several areas affected by an unusual spell of hailstorm and heavy rains in Maharashtra causing extensive damage to crops, as political parties shifted their focus from poll campaign to relief measures in these 15 districts which cover approximately 25 Lok Sabha constituencies.

While 28 people have died because of this unusual weather, the central team has pegged the damage to crops at an estimated at Rs 5,000 crore. The natural calamity is likely to have a political fallout as thousands of farmers are demanding immediate compensation from the government, but the political leadership is unable to announce any relief because of the election model code of conduct.



Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan held a meeting in Mumbai on Thursday to find ways to send relief to the affected areas. "We have sought the EC's permission to give aid to the farmers. The aid will be announced and distributed by the administration and not by political leaders. We have also requested the PMO to send a team to assess the damage and submit a report on it," Chavan said.

Some of the worst affected areas are Western Maharashtra, including Sangli and Pune, Nashiik in North Maharashtra and the Marathwada region where Jalna, Beed, Parbhani and rural areas of Aurangabad have experienced hailstorm for over 8 days. In the Southern parts too, districts such as Solapur have received heavy downpour.