DROUGHT ASSESSMENT USING STANDARDIZED PRECIPITATION INDEX FOR AKOLA DISTRICT, MAHARASHTRAGaurav Sharma, Ankit Kumar and Chandra Kishor KumarAbstract Drought is mostly the result of a decrease in precipitation in comparison with the mean value and it affects the quantities of soil moisture and water resources. The standardized precipitation index (SPI) has been used to monitor the Spatio-temporal variability of dryness and wetness on multiple time scales, which is based only on long-term monthly rainfall data. In the present study, the spatio temporal variations of the drought scenario over Akola district have been studied using the standardized precipitation index (SPI) for the time scales of 3, 6, 12 months. For different time scale drought characterization has been carried out based on severity, intensity and drought magnitude. Based on analysis drought preparedness and mitigation strategy can be formulated which will help to render the impact of drought and its hazardous effects. |