Several reports of farmer suicides urged the government to take measures to alleviate the pain of farmers and provide sufficient aid.
Till the 20th of March, severe hailstorm in Maharashtra had affected more than 15,000 villages across the state. Several farmers in the state approached the state government to waive off all loans, electricity bills and other recoveries from the affected farmers.
Farming completely collapsed in several parts of the state and crops including wheat, rice, corn, maize, groundnuts, jowar, mustard and onion were majorly affected. Hailstorms in Maharashtra left its impact on horticultural products like orange, papaya, mango, banana and sweet melon as well. Hailstorm in Satana in Nashik district severely affected grape and pomegranate cultivations. All these Rabi crops were either at harvesting or developing stage and some got damaged due to hailstorm and others due to untimely rain.
Damage caused
Due to the confluence of winds from both sides of peninsular India, places in Madhya Maharashtra, Marathwada and Vidarbha were lashed by heavy rain and hailstorms during the first two weeks of March and a couple of times in April. Among the worst hit places were the villages of Chandori, Karanjgaon, Saikheda, Tamaswadi. Adding to the woes of people, several houses were damaged which wreaked havoc.
According to information gathered through Right to Information Act, a total area of 1,769,403 hectares was directly affected and the petitioners claimed Rs. One lakh per acre. Thus the total loss can be pegged at about Rs. 42,000 cores approximately. But the state government had appealed to the Centre to provide just about Rs. 5,000 crore for rehabilitation.
Financial Aid and Restoration
In the beginning of this month, Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan repudiated all allegations of not extending a helping hand to hailstorm affected farmers and disbursed financial aid to them.
The Centre on 19th March had sanctioned Rs. 844 crore for relief to affected farmers in Maharashtra after being affirmed from the Election Commission. The Centre had released Rs. 630 crore as subsidies for small and marginal farmers, while farmers involved in bigger agricultural tracts received Rs. 214 crore.
On the occasion of Maharashtra Day celebrations, held to commemorate 1st May, 1960 when Maharashtra attained statehood, the Chief Minister safeguarded the state government and told to media that it is difficult to manage financial aid in such a short time span. He also said, "even while the code of conduct was in force, we asked for help from Union agriculture minister and the Central government. I have never heard of any other state asking and receiving help in such a short period of time."
The state government has also taken preventive measures for battling a less than normal monsoon in India, specially in parts of Maharashtra and have already provided tankers to meet drought like conditions in several places.
picture courtesy- Mid-day
According to the latest weather update by Skymet Meteorology Division in India, Barmer in Rajasthan remained the hottest place in India on Tuesday as day temperature recorded at 44.4°C. Amritsar is again making a comeback in the list with a maximum of 44°C which is six notches above normal. The table shows that Maharashtra and Gujarat are the hottest states at the moment as most of the places in the list belong to these states.
| Places | State | Maximum temperature on Tuesday | Forecast trend for next 24 hours |
| Barmer | Rajasthan | 44.4°C | Rise |
| Amritsar | Punjab | 44°C | Drop |
| Bhuj | Gujarat | 43°C | Rise |
| Amravati | Maharashtra | 42.6°C | Same |
| Rajkot | Gujarat | 42.6°C | Rise |
| Idar | Gujarat | 42.6°C | Rise |
| Jalgaon | Maharashtra | 42.3°C | Same |
| Khargone | Madhya Pradesh | 42.1°C | Rise |
| Malegaon | Maharashtra | 42°C | Same |
| Amreli | Gujarat | 42°C | Rise |
According to the latest weather update by Skymet Meteorology Division in India, the national capital Delhi is expected to turn very hot with temperature likely to settle in the forties again. There are chances of light rain in the financial capital Mumbai but afternoon will be hot and humid. Evening and night hours will be a lot better in the city due to winds from the Arabian Sea. The weather in Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad in South India will be rainy under a cloudy sky on Thursday.
| Cities | Maximum Temperature | Minimum Temperature | Conditions |
| Delhi | 40°C | 26°C | Partly cloudy sky, a hot and uneasy afternoon. |
| Mumbai | 34°C | 27°C | Chances of light rain amid humid and uncomfortable afternoon, Sea breeze to provide relief during evening and night |
| Kolkata | 36°C | 27°C | Sky will be partly cloudy, with chances of thunder activities post noon. |
| Chennai | 33°C | 26°C | Sky will cloudy and there will be chances of rain or thundershowers |
| Bangalore | 30°C | 21°C | Cloudy sky with chances of good amount of rain |
| Hyderabad | 33°C | 25°C | Partly cloudy sky with chances of light rain or thunderstorms |
Photograph by Antony Pratap
According to the latest weather update by Skymet Meteorology Division in India, here are some weather alerts issued for different parts of the country on 7th May:
Weather alert for Delhi/NCR issued at issued at 16:00 Hrs.
Light to moderate dust storm/thundershowers are likely at a few places in Delhi/NCR in the next 2-6 hours. Rain will be accompanied by strong winds blowing at a speed of 40 to 70 kmph.
Weather alert for Haryana issued at 16:00 Hrs.
In the next 2-6 hours, light to moderate dust storm/thundershowers are likely at few places in Bhiwani, Hisar and Rohtak districts. Strong winds ranging between 40 and 70 kmph will also blow during the period.
Weather alert for West Bengal issued at 16:00 Hrs.
In the next 2-4 hours, light to moderate rain and thundershowers are likely at some places in Murshidabad district, with strong winds ranging between 70 and 100 kmph.
Weather alert for Maharashtra issued at 15:10 Hrs
Light to moderate rain and thundershowers are likely at some places in Ahmednagar, Aurangabad, Pune, Satara and Solapur districts with strong winds ranging between 40 and 70 kmph during the next 2 to 6 hours.
Weather alert for Rajasthan issued at 15:10 Hrs
Light to moderate rain and thundershowers are likely at a few places over Bharatpur, Bundi, Dausa, Karauli and Sawai Madhopur districts in the next 2-6 hours. Rain will be accompanied by strong winds blowing at a speed of 40 to 70 kmph.
Weather alert for Bihar issued at 15:10 Hrs.
In the next 2-6 hours, light to moderate rain and thundershowers are likely at few places in Gaya, Jehanabad, Nalanda and Nawada districts, with strong winds ranging between 40 and 70 kmph.
Weather alert for West Bengal issued at 15:05 Hrs.
Light to moderate rain and thundershowers are likely at some places in Bardhaman, Birbhum, East Midnapore and West Midnapore districts, with strong winds ranging between 60 kmph and 80 kmph during the next 2 to 6 hours.
Weather alert for Odisha issued at 15:05 Hrs
Light to moderate rain and thundershowers at some places are likely in Balasore, Kendujhar and Mayurbhanj districts in the next 2-6 hours. Strong winds ranging between 60 kmph and 80 kmph will also be witnessed during this period.
Weather alert for Andhra Pradesh issued at 15:05 Hrs
In the next 2-6 hours, light to moderate rain and thundershowers are likely at a few places in East Godavari, Guntur, Khammam, Nellore, Prakasam, Visakhapatnam, Warangal and West Godavari districts. Rain will be accompanied by strong winds blowing at a speed of 40 to 70 kmph.
Over 100 mm of rain in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday disrupted daily life as various pockets of the city got massively waterlogged. According to the latest weather update by Skymet Meteorology Division in India, rain woes are likely to continue in Thiruvananthapuram for atleast another 24 hours.
Heavy rain lashed the capital for close to six hours on Tuesday. Rain started to occur from 12 in the noon and continued till 5 in the evening. Thiruvananthapuram city recorded 7 cm of rain, while 5 cm of rain was recorded at Thiruvananthapuram airport.
Incidents of wall collapse were reported from Thycaud and Nanthencode areas of the city as heavy rain was accompanied by gusty winds of over 50 kmph. According to media reports, some houses near Mudippura Devi temple near Kallampally were on the verge of collapsing. However, no casualties were reported from the district.
Heavy rain was not only witnessed in Thiruvananthapuram but several places in the state also recorded good amounts of rain. Kottayam recorded 84.2 mm of rain, Alapuzha – 46 mm, Punalur – 68.4 mm, Kozhikode – 8.6 mm, Kochi – 11. 8 mm and Kannur – 0.4 mm.
“The low pressure system near Sri Lanka is likely to persist for couple of days more. Rainfall could be more in Kerala and less in Tamil Nadu now. Thiruvananthapuram could continue to receive good amounts of rain tomorrow”, says G.P Sharma of Skymet Meteorology Division in India.
The normal rainfall figure in Thiruvananthapuram for the month of May is 198 mm, while the city has already recorded close to 175 mm of rain. “Since the start of May, there has been continuous rain in the city. And if it continues to rain like this then the rainfall figures will easily be in excess”, added G.P Sharma.
The table below shows the amount of rain received in Thiruvananthapuram from 1st May till now:
| Days | Rainfall |
| 1-May | 29 mm |
| 2-May | Trace |
| 3-May | 1 mm |
| 4-May | 0.2 mm |
| 5-May | 12 mm |
| 6-May | 31 mm |
| 7-May | 102.2 mm |
As rainfall occurred, maximum temperature in the city dropped from 33⁰C on 5th May to 28.6⁰C on 6th May. The minimum however, sustained at 23.7⁰C.
Photo by asianet.
After observing a good spell of weather filled with rain and dust storms for the last couple of days, Delhi could again experience rise in day temperatures for the next two days. According to the latest weather update by Skymet Meteorology Division in India, the weather in Delhi could again turn hot as there is no weather system in sight in the northwest plains till the 13th of May.
Wind conditions in Delhi will have a component of southeasterly winds on Wednesday that will keep the weather a little comfortable but the resumption of westerly winds under clear sky conditions from Thursday will intensify the heat and push up mercury level. Due to rain in northwest plains, the day temperature in Delhi dropped further on Tuesday to record 35.8°C, four notches below normal.
According to the latest weather update by Skymet Meteorology Division in India, maximum temperature in Delhi on Wednesday could settle around 38°C, while on Thursday, it is expected to record 40°C or above. The following table shows that the day temperatures have plummeted more than six notches since Friday, 2nd May.
| Days | Maximum temperature |
| Friday | 41.7°C |
| Saturday | 38.6°C |
| Sunday | 39.7°C |
| Monday | 38.2°C |
| Tuesday | 35.8°C |
The minimum temperature in Delhi on Wednesday morning was recorded at 24.2°C and is likely to sustain its mid-twenty range for next two days. The table shows morning minimums of last five days in Delhi since 3rd May.
| Days | Minimum temperature |
| Saturday | 26,4°C |
| Sunday | 24.5°C |
| Monday | 26°C |
| Tuesday | 23.1°C |
| Wednesday | 24.2°C |
