Meteorological Drought Analysis Using SPI-6 for Marathwada Region, Maharashtra State, India

Abstract

AbstractDrought is an extreme climatic event, which is recurring in nature. Drought occurs when the amount of precipitation is less than average precipitation for the region. Marathwada region of Maharashtra state, India is selected for this study. Marathwada region is facing extremely dry conditions again and again over the period. Marathwada region has 8 districts and 76 blocks. This study provides a blockwise characterization of meteorological drought from 1980 to 2014 using the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) at a 6-month time scale. The six-month SPI (SPI-6) is used as it characterizes the rainfall amount during the preceding half-year, and is most useful for characterizing shallow soil moisture available to crops and forage grasses. Drought duration, severity, and frequency are assessed for all 76 blocks which show considerable spatial variation. The drought condition of each block is highlighted based on drought years, duration, average SPI-6 value, and type of drought event. The most affected blocks due to droughts are Badnapur, Mukhed, Dharmabad, Khultabad, Lohara, Phulambri, Vaijapur, Ambejogai, Sengaon, Mahur, Lohara, etc. Results from this study give important information regarding blocks in which drought events occurred more frequently and are most vulnerable to it. This study is helpful for water resource planners and stakeholders to properly manage drought conditions according to their severity and location.KeywordsMeteorological droughtSPI-6Drought durationSeverityFrequency