{
  "id": 16860420,
  "title": "Maharashtra drought aid release: Who’s eligible and when will Rs 5,000 be credited? All we know",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/28/maharashtra-drought-aid-release-whos-eligible-and-when-will-rs-5-000",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-28T06:29:16.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Indian Express",
    "slug": "the-indian-express",
    "url": "https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/mumbai/maharashtra-drought-2026-news-payouts-release-date-eligiblity-rs-5000-credit-10940097/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "On Tuesday, October 27, the Maharashtra government announced an advance assistance of Rs 5,000 for each of the 1.5 crore farmers in 304 drought-affected talukas. The Rs 7,500 crore scheme will deposit the funds directly into the eligible farmers' bank accounts. To be eligible, farmers must have suffered more than 33% crop damage, as per the criteria set by the National Disaster Response Fund. Income tax payers, state government employees, and public representatives have been excluded from the scheme. Forest rights holder farmers without an AgriStack Farmer ID will receive the amount based on their e-KYC. As of now, around 94% of affected farmers have been surveyed. The funds will be credited to farmers' accounts before Diwali, on November 8, through the Direct Benefit Transfer system. Farmers who have completed their e-KYC under government schemes between November 1, 2025, and October 27 will not need to repeat the process. Rs 2,000 crore will come from the Relief and Rehabilitation Department, while Rs 5,500 crore will be provided by the Finance Department. The government is also considering adding more areas to the drought-affected list, with requests received from Pune, Palghar, Raigad, and Kolhapur districts. The Revenue Minister directed officials to prioritize fodder cultivation, procure supplies from other districts, and ensure functional rural water supply schemes.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}