This year, drought in 22 out of 24 districts in Jharkhand was so distressing that hundreds of thousands of farmers are unable to invest in the next crop cycle. They depend on food rations from the government for survival and hope for a quick settlement of their compensation claims. A ground report from Palamu district.

Uttar Pradesh, one of the leading rice producing states in India, is reeling, as more than half the monsoon season is over and the state has a rainfall deficit of 40 %, which has had a direct impact on paddy sowing. Other paddy growing states in the Indo-Gangetic plains have also reported deficient rainfall. How will this affect paddy production and food welfare schemes? Will there be a ripple effect on the global food supply, as India is the world's largest rice exporter? Gaon Connection tries to find answers in its new series, Paddy Pain.