Mid June and the End of September is normally considered the Monsson Season in Nepal. July and August are the months that receives heavist rainfall in Nepal. But, this Year in the peak of monsoon, Madhesh Province is facing drought. This situtation has led the provincial governmentn to officially declare it a ‘Drought-Hit Province.’
Groundwater sources tube wells, wells and handpumps have dried up in many areas of the provinces. It is the first time in the province that the authorities distribute drinking water through fire trucks and tankers. I have read in some newspaper articles regarding this issue and this is bringing the province in brink of scarcity.
Yesterday, I post in my Facebook Post regarding this issue. In the picture i showed a drie up river.
These efforts remain limited and unable to meet the growing demand for water in both household and in agriculture. Water scarcity has dealt a severe blow to paddy farming in the province. Paddy Farming is the backbone of agriculture in Madhesh.
As of government data mid-July 2025 only 46.83% of the targeted 372,465 hectares had been planted with paddy. This is about 80.6% less during the same period last year. Even the fields that have been planted are cracking due to lack of irrigation. This has led the food security risk.
People in Janakpur are taking water from the firefigthers in Madhesh Province.
Farmers are watching their crops wilt. They are in hope of recovery from the government side. The federal government has also declared Madhesh a crisis-affected zone for three months and has issued an official notice on 8th of Shrawan of 2082 in the Nepal Gazette. The fedaral and provincial government authorities are looking into groundwater recharge systems, rainwater harvesting technologies and larger irrigation projects.
Government of Nepal has declared Madhesh as disaster-affected area for three months. The official Nepal’s Gazette is published on this matter.
So far, What I know is that the province has been previously facing the depletion of Churey resources and hapazard extraction of sand and mines from different zones. This situation might be due to climate change, hapazard use of resources, lack of irrgation facility and water recharge facilities. This need an immediate action to resolve the issue of water crisis.