Jaipur/Jaisalmer: Rajasthan govt has declared 80 tehsils across 14 districts drought-affected for the 2026 kharif season, citing deficient rainfall and adverse crop conditions.The notification, issued by the department of disaster management, relief and civil defence on Oct 24, classifies 69 tehsils as severely drought-affected and 11 as moderately affected. The declaration will remain in force for six months. The assessment was carried out under the Centre’s Drought Management Manual, 2016.The move follows sustained political pressure from former chief minister Ashok Gehlot, who had criticised chief minister Bhajan Lal Sharma and his govt over the delay in declaring drought-hit areas. Gehlot had flagged crop losses and shortages of water and fodder, particularly in western Rajasthan, and demanded early relief measures, including fodder depots, cattle camps and tanker-based drinking-water supply.The declaration also comes amid rising concern over rural livelihoods, with water scarcity and fodder shortages threatening agriculture and livestock. Prolonged distress could force migration as crop losses mount and farm incomes fall.Sources in govt said the current declaration is the first phase of the exercise, and more tehsils could be added to the drought-hit list in the coming months if conditions worsen. Further assessments will decide the extent of expansion, they added.Barmer and Jalore have the highest number of drought-hit tehsils, at nine each, followed by Jodhpur and Dungarpur with seven each. Jaisalmer and Phalodi have five each, while Banswara and Balotra have three each. Churu, Beawar, Nagaur, Pali and Sirohi have one affected tehsil each.In Barmer, the affected tehsils are Gadra Road, Chauhtan, Barmer, Baytoo, Sedwa, Ramsar, Shiv, Dhanau and Barmer Rural.To tackle fodder shortages, Barmer district collector Chinmayi Gopal has approved 10 fodder depots in the first phase through village service cooperative societies. These will supply fodder to eligible livestock owners at subsidised rates on a no-profit, no-loss basis.The collector said ground-truthing in Nokhra and Batadu tehsils had been completed and proposals submitted to state govt. Approvals have also been received for fodder depots, livestock camps and drinking-water transportation in affected areas.The drought declaration comes as Rajasthan’s water reserves show a sharp decline. Reservoirs held around 8,014 million cubic metres (MCM) of water on Oct 16, or 61.5% of total capacity. During the corresponding period last year, reserves stood at 11,794 MCM, or 90.5% — a year-on-year fall of about 3,780 MCM.Groundwater stress has deepened the concern. Central Ground Water Board’s 2025 assessment classified 213 of Rajasthan’s 302 groundwater assessment units, or 70.5%, as overexploited, while another 23 were deemed critical.The state govt now faces the task of ensuring timely relief, especially drinking water, fodder and employment support for families in drought-hit areas.
