Mumbai: With the upcoming local body elections in sight, the Maharashtra government has revised its list of flood-affected talukas, adding 56 more regions under political pressure. This move comes even as the government withdrew its earlier decision to include 35 talukas, 30 from Konkan and 5 from Pune district, which were not severely hit by floods or heavy rain. After the revision, apart from three talukas in Palghar, no other taluka from Konkan remains on the list.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had earlier announced a ₹31,628 crore relief package for 253 flood-affected talukas across 31 districts. These regions suffered massive crop losses due to excessive rainfall and floods between June and September, damaging over 91 lakh hectares of farmland.
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The first list of affected areas, released on October 9 by the Relief and Rehabilitation Department, quickly drew political criticism from MLAs and ministers seeking inclusion of their constituencies.
Following protests and representations from legislators, the government issued a revised list at midnight on Friday, bringing the total to 282 affected talukas, 31 partially and 251 fully affected, according to report by Loksatta. Newly added areas include 16 talukas from Nanded and 3 from Dhule district, both of which had reported significant crop damage earlier but were initially left out.
The updated list also shows the political undertone of the exercise. In Disaster Management Minister Girish Mahajan’s home district, Jalgaon, the number of affected talukas increased from 4 to 9. Similarly, in Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule’s Amravati district, the count rose from 6 to 15. Health Minister Prakash Abitkar’s Kolhapur and Tourism Minister Shambhuraj Desai’s Satara districts each saw five new talukas added.
Officials admitted that, to expedite relief before Diwali, the government prioritized assistance over strict adherence to assessment norms. Instead of waiting for final damage reports from district collectors, the relief list was prepared using preliminary agricultural data.
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