Meteorological drought dynamics in Marathwada Region, India: temporal, spatial and regional occurrence assessment

The present investigation emphasizes on the meteorological drought characteristics of the Marathwada region using the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) method. Rainfall data of eight districts in the region from 1901 to 2021 have been investigated. The analysis revealed that the region experienced a significant 49 per cent drought with some districts, such as Hingoli and Nanded, facing more frequent droughts than precipitation events. The longest drought, spanning from 1918 to 1927, and the most severe drought years, including 1918, 1920, 1929, 1972 and 2015, underscore the severity of the situation. Notably, extreme drought (ED) and severe drought (SD) events were experienced between 2 per cent and 5 per cent, with mild drought (MD) and mild wet (MW) classes being the dominant classes. Spatial analysis using the Kriging method revealed that the southern and eastern parts of the region are at higher risk of drought. Trend analysis using Mann‐Kendall (MK) and Spearman Rho (SR) tests showed an increasing drought trend. In contrast, there is a significant increase in the extreme drought class using the Innovative Trend Analysis (ITA) method. The spatial occurrence rates of extreme and severe droughts have increased since 2010, highlighting the urgent need for improved water resource management and climate adaptation strategies to reduce future drought risks.