Odisha Declares Unseasonal Rain as State-Specific Disaster, Farmers to Get SDRF Assistance

Bhubaneswar: Odisha government on Thursday declared unseasonal rain as a state-specific disaster. The proposal was approved by Chief Minister Shri Mohan Charan Majhi, enabling affected farmers to receive financial support from the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF).

With this decision, unseasonal rainfall — often responsible for extensive crop damage across the state — will now be officially recognized as a disaster under state-specific norms. According to an official release, up to 10 percent of the annual SDRF allocation can now be utilized to compensate farmers for crop loss resulting from such weather events.

The move comes against the backdrop of severe unseasonal rainfall in December 2024, which damaged crops on 22,791 hectares and impacted over 6.66 lakh farmers. In response, Chief Minister Majhi had declared the incident a special state disaster and sanctioned agricultural input subsidies worth ₹291 crore to support the affected farmers.

Now, with the permanent inclusion of unseasonal rain in the list of state-specific disasters, Odisha’s disaster management framework has been further strengthened. This change ensures timely and structured relief for thousands of farmers who face unpredictable weather patterns due to climate change.

Unseasonal rain becomes the ninth event to be listed as a state-specific disaster in Odisha. Other previously notified state-specific disasters include lightning, heatwaves, whirlwinds, tornadoes, heavy rainfall, boat mishaps, drowning, and snakebites. These are in addition to centrally-recognized disasters like cyclones, droughts, floods, and earthquakes that regularly impact the state.