She lost three family members to farm distress in five years. Now, drought is back

Nima Dnyaneshwar Malekar, 58, lives in a parched village of Pimplapur, Yavatmal district, Maharashtra. For five years, she has been mourning the loss of her two sons and husband, all killed by suicide. The Malekar family's agricultural land in the village produced no crops for two consecutive years after excess rain in 2021, which washed away their harvest.

Younger son Tapaveen, 27, was found hanging from a tree in October 2024, just a month before his wedding. Husband Dnyaneshwar, 65, took his own life on July 22 this year. Nima's only nephew, Harish Choudhary, says the reason for all three deaths was the recurring crop losses, lack of adequate rainfall, and problems in securing electricity for a borewell.

The Malekars are not alone, as 265 of Maharashtra's 358 tehsils have been declared drought-affected. Nima's husband, Dnyaneshwar, had built their house only in the previous year after getting funds under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. Nima says she spends half her time at her brother's home in Kosala village, where she is assisted by neighbors and family in taking care of her land. She says she will live as long as God chooses and will go when her time comes.