In the heart of Nepal’s fertile Madhesh Province, where golden paddy fields have long been the lifeblood of communities and the backbone of the nation’s food supply, a harsh and unrelenting drought in 2025 has turned abundance into scarcity. This year, the monsoon rains—the lifeline for millions of farmers—failed to arrive on time, bringing with it a crisis that threatens not only livelihoods but also the very identity of this agricultural heartland.
The Reality of a Drying Land
Madhesh, occupying just 6.5% of Nepal’s land area but home to nearly 21% of its population, is Nepal’s breadbasket. It produces over a quarter of the country’s rice and wheat, and a majority share of essential crops like mangoes, sugarcane, pulses, and bananas. In a normal year, its fields feed families not just locally but across cities like Kathmandu and Pokhara.
But 2025 has been anything but normal. By late July, rainfall was distressingly absent across all eight districts, with the region receiving a mere 12% of expected precipitation for the monsoon season. “With August just two days away, much of the farmland across Madhesh remains dry,” says Ajit Tiwari, highlighting the withering seedlings and cracked, parched soil that define this drought year.
Ali Shekh, a farmer from Sarlahi who usually harvests 150 quintals of paddy annually from his 2.21 hectares, shares a painful truth: “I used to grow and sell rice every year. I may have to buy it for my family this time. Managing household expenses will be difficult.” This sentiment echoes through the fields and homes of Madhesh, a region where farming is more than income—it’s a way of life.
Hard Numbers Reveal a Grim Picture
Government data confirms the severity of the crisis. Only 51% of the paddy fields that should have been planted this season have received crops so far. Key districts report even lower rates: Mahottari at 35%, Siraha at 38%, Dhanusha at 35%, and Saptari at 37%. Even where transplanting occurred, dry conditions have caused soil to crack deeply, stressing young plants and threatening yields.
In total, about 372,000 hectares are suitable for rice cultivation in Madhesh, yet less than half have been planted. This deficit is expected to translate into a sharp decline in production, harming the agricultural GDP contribution from the province that stands at around 36.7%—a major economic blow on top of a humanitarian one.
Agricultural expert Prakash Kumar Sanjel starkly warns, “If this drought continues, we’ll see a sharp drop in production... the losses could be significant.” Last fiscal year, the province’s paddy output reached a record 1.48 million tonnes, buoyed by consistent rainfall and ample fertiliser supply—a sharp contrast to this year’s impending shortfall.
The Human Toll: Stories from the Field
The impact is deeply personal and profoundly distressing for families dependent on farming. Puran Mahato, a farmer from Haripur Municipality, shares, “My field has deep cracks. There might not be enough even for my own consumption.” Others, like Bahadur Kawadi from Dhanusha, describe how not only is rain missing but even canal water has dried up, and pump sets have failed due to depleted groundwater.
The Kamala Irrigation Project, meant to irrigate 25,000 hectares and benefit 40,000 households, falters under broken pumps and insufficient water supply. Farmers like Shravan Kumar Chaurasiya express frustration over lack of fair access to fertilizer and pump sets, noting that distribution favors those with wealth or political ties.
This drought has struck beyond fields—it has dried up hopes, shaken food security, and stretched families thin trying to balance daily expenses amid the loss of their main source of income.
Climate Change and Long-Term Challenges
Experts and officials agree this is not just an extraordinary year—it is a symptom of accelerating climate change impacts. Madhesh has long been vulnerable to extreme weather, but recent years have seen these stresses worsen.
Floods one year are followed by crushing droughts the next, disrupting planting cycles and heightening the region’s food insecurity. A report from CARE Nepal’s Climate Smart Village project reveals that 95% of farmers in drought-prone Siraha and Saptari districts identified drought as their greatest hazard, underscoring the urgent need for adaptation.
Hope Through Resilience and Innovation
Amidst the hardship, stories of hope emerge. Some farmers have adopted climate-smart irrigation technologies like solar-powered pumps and drip systems, stretching limited water supplies to save crops. Community-led initiatives supported by the Climate Smart Village model are empowering farmers to cope better with water scarcity.
The government has been alerted to the crisis, declaring Madhesh a disaster area and launching emergency relief with water tankers and drought response plans. Long-term projects like the Rs87 billion Sunkoshi Marin Diversion Project aim to improve irrigation for over 122,000 hectares of farmland, though completion is anticipated only by 2027.
Local agricultural authorities are working to repair canals, promote alternative crops if drought persists, and support small-scale irrigation improvements.
A Call to Action
Madhesh’s drought crisis is a deeply human story—of farmers battling nature’s fury to feed their families and a nation. Ali Shekh’s worry about buying rice for his own family is a stark reminder that the drought threatens food security at its roots.
As we witness these fields cry for water, Green Smith Nepal stands with Madhesh’s farmers. We must amplify calls for urgent government action, sustain investments in irrigation infrastructure, promote climate-smart agriculture, and empower communities to adapt.
Together, we can help ensure that next season’s fields don’t dry and crack but flourish with life again. Because when fields cry, it is not just the land that suffers—it is all of us.
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