Drought hits India's richest state

Drought has hit three-quarters of India's richest state of Maharashtra, the government said on Saturday, after prolonged low rainfall in the region home to the megacity of Mumbai.

The declaration in Maharashtra came after the national weather department forecast India would end its annual monsoon season with a rainfall deficit, threatening farmers' livelihoods.

A stronger-than-usual El Nino climate phenomenon, which typically brings drier conditions to South Asia, has also led to abnormal rain patterns, the weather department has said.

The government of Maharashtra, a huge western state whose capital Mumbai is India's financial and commercial centre, said drought was present across 74 percent of the territory. AFP