New Delhi, September 28 (ANN): The All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) has called for the 2026 drought to be declared a disaster of severe national nature, accusing the Centre of failing to provide adequate relief to farmers despite widespread rainfall deficits and declining kharif sowing.

In a statement issued by AIKS National President Rajan Kshirsagar, the organisation said the government had mobilised resources for the month-long Seva Sankalp Abhiyan beginning September 17, but had failed to demonstrate a comparable response to drought-affected rural areas.

Agriculture Ministry data showed kharif sowing at 1,096.49 lakh hectares as of September 11, compared with 1,112.54 lakh hectares during the corresponding period last year. Independent reports have similarly noted that sowing was about 1.6 million hectares below the previous year’s level, with paddy, ragi, oilseeds and other crops particularly affected.

Kshirsagar said the headline national rainfall figure concealed severe regional disparities. According to the statement, prolonged dry spells had particularly affected rain-dependent farming communities. The India Meteorological Department’s data cited in recent reports showed rainfall about 15% below the long-period average during the season, while nearly half of India’s districts had experienced deficient rainfall.

The AIKS statement highlighted the sharp contrast between sugarcane and dryland crops such as ragi. It claimed sugarcane acreage had reached around 108% of normal, while ragi sowing remained close to 40% of normal. The organisation argued that conventional drought-assessment mechanisms could fail to capture distress where farmers were unable to sow their fields in the first place.

The situation has been particularly severe in parts of southern India. Karnataka, for example, recorded a 34% rainfall deficit through September 11, with sowing losses reported in rice, pulses and millets. The state had declared 101 taluks drought-hit and was considering extending the declaration to more than 200 taluks.

Maharashtra has also moved to formally recognise drought conditions. On September 26, the state declared drought in 265 of its 358 sub-districts across 34 districts, based on rainfall deficiency and other indicators under its drought-management framework.

AIKS also linked the drought to a wider pattern of extreme weather, pointing to floods and landslides in the Himalayan region and severe rainfall events in other parts of the country. The organisation argued that drought and floods should be treated as interconnected manifestations of a changing and increasingly erratic climate.

Among its principal demands, AIKS has sought a ₹1.2 lakh crore special drought package, additional assistance of ₹500 crore for each affected district, free seeds for resowing, expanded employment under MGNREGA and immediate deployment of central assessment teams to affected states.

The organisation has also demanded that drought assessment be conducted at village and revenue-circle levels rather than relying primarily on district averages. It called for recognition of tenants, sharecroppers and oral lessees so that relief reaches those actually cultivating the land.

On rural debt, AIKS has demanded a waiver of farm and rural-worker debt, including Kisan Credit Card and microfinance liabilities, together with a 12-month suspension of coercive recovery in notified drought areas. It has further sought ₹25 lakh in ex-gratia assistance and full rehabilitation for families of farmers and rural workers who die amid the crisis.

The statement called for 200 days of guaranteed MGNREGA employment, 100 litres of safe drinking water per person per day in affected villages, free healthcare, educational-fee waivers and relief from fixed electricity charges on agricultural pump sets.

AIKS also demanded restructuring of the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana into a publicly run insurance system, with individual farms as the assessment unit and time-bound settlement of claims.

The organisation said it would intensify mobilisation of farmers and rural workers if the Centre did not respond to its demands, arguing that drought relief should be treated as an immediate national priority rather than being determined by aggregate rainfall figures alone.
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