Nashik: Unseasonal heavy rainfall and hailstorm on Sunday afternoon have severely damaged grape vineyards and onion crops in Nashik district.Niphad, Dindori, Nashik, Satana, Kalwan, Deola, Malegaon, Yeola, Nandgaon and Sinnar talukas of the district received heavy rain on Sunday. Nashik city also recorded 13.6mm rainfall in just two-and-a-half hours between 3.30pm and 5.30pm.Vineyards in Niphad, Dindori and Chandwad talukas were the most affected.According to the grape growers association, the rain damaged around 30% of 60,000 acres under grape cultivation in Niphad taluka alone. The grapes were in various stages of development. These vineyards were to be harvested after 20 to 80 days. Kailas Bhosle, the vice-president of Maharashtra Rajya Draksha Bagayatdar Sangh (MRDBS), an association of grape farmers, said it would take a couple of days to ascertain the exact extent of losses.Both Nipahd and Dindori are major grape-growing regions and account for over 80% of the total 1.7 lakh acres under grape cultivation in the district. Usually, the grape harvest season begins by December end and continues till April.Arvind Bhalerao, a grape farmer, said, We have seen unseasonal rain and hailstorms in February and March. But I have never seen such hailstorm in November in the past 20-30 years. Some vineyards were to start harvest in the next three weeks. There has been almost a 100% loss in my vineyard. Apart from grapes, kharif onions, which were about to be harvested, were also damaged. Light rain in parts of Sambhajinagar After overcast conditions throughout the day, many parts of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar received light to medium showers on Sunday night. Earlier, Waluj and a few other fringe areas of the city reported a brief spells of drizzles in the morning.We also published the following articles recentlyUnseasonal rain, winds lash Gujarat, 20 deadUnseasonal rains caused by the western disturbance lashed almost all parts of Gujarat since early Sunday, with the State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) recording 14 deaths till 8pm. Low visibility led to a flight being diverted at Surat airport, and at least 10 other flights were delayed. The deaths, primarily caused by lightning during thunderstorms, were the highest in Dahod at four, followed by three in Bharuch and two in Tapi. In addition, at least 40 animals were killed, as per government authorities. The showers and strong winds along with hailstorms caused widespread destruction of crops and damage to property.20 lives lost as unseasonal rains lash Gujarat, most deaths due to lightningUnseasonal rains lashed Gujarat, causing 20 deaths and widespread destruction of crops and property. Low visibility led to a flight being diverted and 10 other flights being delayed. At least 40 animals were also killed. The assessment of the damage will be conducted once the rains subside. The highest rainfall was recorded in Chuda, Surendranagar. The impact is expected to dissipate by Tuesday with light rains in some parts of South Gujarat. Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel reviewed the situation and instructed the administration to intensify relief work.Heavy rain hits normalcy in NilgirisHeavy rain caused flash floods and landslides in the Nilgiris and Coimbatore district. One person was washed away in the flash floods, and roads to Nilgiris were blocked. Nilgiris Mountain Railway services were cancelled due to landslides. Schools in the Nilgiris and Karamadai union in Coimbatore were closed. State tourism minister and Nilgiris MP inspected the rain-affected areas. State Disaster Response Force teams are expected to conduct rescue operations. Theni, Virudhunagar, Tenkasi, Kanyakumari declared school holidays.

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