The farmers in Haryana had suffered heavy paddy crop loss in about 4.04 lakh acre land due to waterlogging in Ambala, Kurukshetra, Karnal, Yamunanagar, Sirsa and Fatehabad districts following incessant rain and floods in the region. In Kurukshetra, agriculture department teams visited the fields on Wednesday and met farmers to ascertain the ground situation and take inputs about the damage to the crops due to floods in their area. Not only this, the farmers are now suffering further losses due to strike by the rice exporters as well as rice millers, as a result the farmers are compelled to sell out their crops at much reduced prices.

Information reveals that over 45 lakh metric ton rice in the country being exported at present, which include 23 lakh metric ton rice export from Haryana only to various countries every year as a result the farmers bringing their paddy crop in the grain markets in the state are finding limited customers due to ongoing strike and huge stocks of unsold paddy crop is lying in open in grain markets in the absence of buyers. A information reveals that 50 thousand quintal paddy  is lying unsold in Kaithal, 1500 thousand quintal paddy in Kurukshetra, 300 thousand quintal paddy in Karnal, 46 thousand quintal paddy in Jind, 3500 thousand quintal paddy in Yamunanagar, 70 thousand quintal paddy in Panipat and 20 thousand quintal paddy is lying unsold in Ambala grain market.

However, Kurukshetra deputy director agriculture Pardeep Meel said that the state government supported affected farmers with technical knowhow and advised them to cultivate late variety paddy like PB 1692, PR 126. He said, the teams also ascertained the ground situation of waterlogging, crop health and so on. According to the agriculture experts, wet paddy crop has caused damage to the quality of the rice, which became dark in colour as such the buyers are not prepared to pay higher prices for the paddy stocks brought by the farmers in grain markets.

While talking to the media persons at Chandigarh, the former Haryana chief minister and leader of political parties in opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda strongly condemned ruling BJP government policies as reagrd export of basmati rice resulting the rice exporters to stop procurement of rice in the grain markets of seven states including Haryana which have already suffered export of 25 lakh ton basmati rice so far resulting heavy loss to the farmers. The price of basmati rice in Haryana state witnessed heavy drop from Rs 3500 to 3600 per quintal now being sold at the price Rs 2500 to Rs 2600 per quintal at present. Hooda said, in case immediate steps will not be taken by the ruling government most of the farmers will be doomed and compelled to commit suicide. Information also reveals that the sale of 1121, 1509, 1781 and Sarbati types of rice has been worst affected in Haryana grain markets. Hooda said that the government in the centre should take immediate action on farmers demands.

Source - https://www.thefinancialworld.com