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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Words and photographs by Neelima Vallangi

A rain festival with no rain: the Indian farmers bracing for a ‘super’ El Niño as monsoon arrives late

El Niño Odisha India CEEW
Two women, one carrying a metal container on her head, walk past a colourfully painted roadside structure
Farmers in Laxmipur village, Odisha state, say their crops failed during the last El Niño event in 2023-24 Photograph: Neelima Vallangi

Kasturi Gamango and Pramila Sabar cannot contain their giggles as they explain one of the big attractions of the Raja festival, which they attended a few days earlier along with 20 other farmer families in Laxmipur, in Odisha’s Ganjam district.

“We do no work for three days during the festival,” they say. “Our husbands cook and clean while we enjoy our free time.”

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