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Everyone is aware of the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/IPL-vs-PIL-With-an-alarming-rate-of-farmers-suicide-how-can-Maharashtra-grounds-have-water-for-IPL-pitches/articleshow/51700208.cms">severe drought conditions</a> in Maharashtra, because of which several matches of the ongoing IPL have also <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Bombay-High-Court-says-no-IPL-matchesin-drought-hit-Maharashtra-after-April-30/articleshow/51812532.cms">shifted outside the state</a>. In these alarming conditions, the government has rationed water to the beer industry and is also keeping an eye on the use of water for sugarcane, known to take up a lot of water. 
 
A few weeks ago, the Maharashta state assembly also spent a considerable time talking about the sugar mills in Latur, one of the worse drought-affected regions, and if it was okay for the mills there to use water for crushing sugarcane. 
 
"Rather than the sugar mills, it is the sugarcane which probably uses more water. The mills nowadays use water in sugarcane for their operations, and sugarcane farmers should shift to drip irrigation. However, we cannot tell farmers not to cultivate sugarcane without making alternative crops such as pulses or soyabean equally remunerative for them," Latur-based Atul Deulgaonkar, who specialises in environmental studies, told ET. 
 
Sugarcane has been blamed for misusing water for a long time now, but now the beer industry in Aurangabad, housing famous brands like Foster's, Carlsberg and Heineken, has also come under the ministry’s prying eyes for its water use. 
 
The water supply to the beer industry has already been cut by 20% instead of the earlier 10% cut. However, a minister from the state's cabinet has told ET that the Maharashtra government had entered into agreements which would reserve water that is used for making beer. 
 
As of now, Aurangabad uses water from the dead pool of Jayakwadi, one of the largest <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/91-Key-reservoirs-in-India-have-less-than-a-quarter-of-their-full-capacities-left/articleshow/51825053.cms">reservoirs in India</a>, and irrigation officials are confident that the reservoir holds enough water for at least the next three months. 
 
On the other hand, locals employed in beer factories are also worried about their jobs in case the factories decide to shut down or shift from there. "People are not migrating from drought-hit villages because there's no water to drink, but because they do not have any work," said a farmer from Marathwada region, who did not wish to be identified. 
 
However, people of Maharashtra are more worried about the availability of drinking water than for industrial purpose, given the acute shortage of water in most regions of the state. 
 
<a href="https://shrigorde.files.wordpress.com/2015/07/dsc_2736-wt.jpg">Image source</a>

Maharashtra faces the tough challenge of using water either for drinking or for industries

According to weather departments, the monsoon was below sufficiency this year and the grave consequences of low rainfall have already begun to show up. It is reported that drought like symptoms have started showing up in both rural and urban areas of the peninsular India. Maharashtra's Marathwada and western Maharashtra regions and north interior Karnataka, being the worst sufferers. 
 
While Kharif crop has already been affected, prospects of Rabi crop depend largely on rainfall in September. However, weather experts believe September rainfall will also be meagre. Authorities in Maharasthra having stored water in most dams for drinking purposes, chances are unlike that water will be diverted for irrigation purpose. 
 
Dams in the Pune region hold water up to just about half their capacity , compared with 82% at this time in 2014 and 87% in 2013. The Pune Municipal Corporation has decided to implement a 15% water cut and may restrict supply of drinking water to alternate days. 
 
Latur residents in Maharashtra are in grave distress as their plight of getting water, once in 8 or 15 days may worsen. Ujani dam, the lifeline of Solapur district, has zero live storage as against 72% at this time last year. Similarly, Jayakwadi dam in Aurangabad has just 5% live storage and the administration has made up its mind to use its dead stock, which is usually not exhausted, to meet drinking water requirements. As per the agriculture ministry, about 56% of the net cultivated area of the country is rain-fed, accounting for 44% of food production. 
Sugarcane farmers from drought-affected areas are selling cane as fodder instead of waiting for a few more months to sell it to sugar mills. They are getting Rs 2,800 to Rs 3,000 a tonne, compared to Rs 2,000 paid by most mills this year. Maharashtra Agriculture Minister Eknath Khadse has indicated that the state government may not allow sugar mills from drought-affected areas to crush sugarcane in the October September sugar year. A sugar mill of 2,500 tonne per day crushing capacity requires 5 lakh litres of water every day . 
 
Sugar mill owners said since cane availability will be less, very few mills will be able to do crushing next season. 
However, a venture started to artificially curate rainfall didn’t yield much result. the artificial rain fall experiment being carried out in Marathwada region has not given much rainfall, even after about 80 flying hours. "There are not enough rain-bearing clouds coming to this region," said a senior official. 
 
In some districts of neighbouring Karnataka, rains were as much as 40% less than what is considered normal. Of the total 171 talukas in Karnataka, the state government has declared drought in 135, almost four times more than last year. 
 
Karnataka has asked for more than Rs 3,000 crore of central assistance, state officials said. According to officials of the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre, north interior Karnataka has most of the drought-affected areas.

Drought-like situation in Maharasthra and Karnataka. Blame it on low rainfall

<ul><li><keyword id="6366108" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ajit-pawar">Ajit Pawar</keyword>, nephew of Sharad Pawar, is contesting the <keyword id="2472094" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Maharashtra-assembly-election">Maharashtra Assembly election</keyword> from <keyword id="506914" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Baramati-constituency">Baramati constituency</keyword>.</li><li>According to the Election Commission, Pawar is set to win by a margin of over 1 lakh votes.</li><li>Pawar announced he was resigned from politics after being accused of a ₹25,000 crore scam.</li><li>Within a day, Pawar announced that he's going to continue to contest the state election.</li></ul> Ajit Pawar, nephew of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) patriarch Sharad Pawar, resigned as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) and quit politics altogether on September 27 — yet, his name was still on the ballots in Maharashtra on October 21. And, now he's won the in Baramati constituency with a large margin of 1.5 lakh. Pawar was able to garner 83.24% of vote share which he got nearly 2 lakh votes to his name. In comparison, the BJP candidate Gopichand Kundlik Padalkar trailed behind with 30,282 votes, which is only 12.92% of the vote share. Also read: 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 <div type="NEWSINCONTEXT" target="false" refhostid="261" refmsid="71734588" refmstype="2" refmssubtype="0"><cdata><![CDATA[Dynasty candidates contesting Haryana and Maharashtra Assembly election 2019]]></cdata></div>
















 Fighting the election from Baramati constituency, he’ll be going up against 10 other candidates, including Gopichand Kundlik Padalkar from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The high-profile leader of the NCP, known fondly as Ajit Dada, hasn’t had an easy run. Amid campaigning for the election, he was accused of money laundering by the Enforcement Directorate - a ₹25,000 crore scam to do with the Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank (MSCB). He’s made headlines for all the wrong reasons but he has still not be written off by the political watchers in the state. Also read: 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 <div type="NEWSINCONTEXT" target="false" refhostid="261" refmsid="71731412" refmstype="2" refmssubtype="0"><cdata><![CDATA[Maharashtra Assembly Election 2019 results, BJP-Sena combine leads in over 163 seats and Congress-NCP in 93]]></cdata></div>
















 After Pawar’s unexpected resignation, he held a press conference within a day to apologise and announce that he will continue to contest the election. "I put in my papers before the speaker's personal assistant at the state assembly yesterday because I felt responsible for Sharad Pawar's name turning up in the matter. I apologise for taking such a decision without telling anybody," Making the fight tougher for Ajit Pawar, party chief Sharad Pawar and Baramati MP Supriya Sule didn’t hold any rallies for Pawar — instead it was his wife, son and other leaders campaigned for him. Pawar’s past The current MSCB scam is the second money laundering allegation leveled against Pawar. Back in 2012, Pawar resigned as the Water Resources Minister after allegations of ₹20,000 irrigation scam. He made a comeback mere months later, when he was sworn in as the deputy CM after getting a clean chit from the government. Baramati, home field of the Pawars, is pegged as a homage to the ‘Sharad Pawar Model of Development’ by the NCP. What was once a primarily agrarian constituency is now filled with automobile units, distilleries, textile and sugar mills, according to the party. After the Assembly election in 2009, Pawar asserted that he would become the deputy chief minister of Maharashtra but lost out to Chhagan Bhujbal. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/politics/elections/news/dynasty-candidates-contesting-haryana-and-maharashtra-assembly-election-2019/articleshow/71734588.cms">Dynasty candidates contesting Haryana and Maharashtra Assembly election 2019</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/politics/elections/news/bhupinder-singh-hooda-haryana-election-results-2019/articleshow/71734070.cms">Bhupinder Singh Hooda is leading – forging an unbreakable bond with his Garhi Sampla constituency</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/politics/elections/news/dhiraj-deshmukh-maharashtra-assembly-election-result-2019/articleshow/71730385.cms">Deshmukh brothers are looking for a Congress win in Latur</a>

You Searched For "latur sugar mills" and got 3 results

Maharashtra faces the tough challenge of using water either for drinking or for industries

BI India Bureau

Drought-like situation in Maharasthra and Karnataka. Blame it on low rainfall

BI India Bureau

Ajit Pawar wins in Baramati with more than 1.5 lakh margin

Prabhjote Gill

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