Heavy rain accompanied by strong winds and hailstorm in many parts of the state has added to the woes of farmers. The farmers are likely to suffer a loss of over 10 per cent of their yield.

Agriculture experts said the rain spell accompanied by hailstorm will affect standing wheat crop, fruit trees and even vegetables.

It will also delay the harvest by about 10 to 15 days, while adding to the input cost of the farmers who would now toil hard to save their crop from getting infected due to water accumulation. Heavy rains today hit crops in Nabha, Sanaur, Patiala, Rajpura and even parts of Fatehgarh Sahib.

The experts have said that even though a light spell of rain was initially beneficial, the strong winds and heavy downpour on Monday hit the crop. “At this stage, hailstorm, heavy rain and strong storms are not good for fully ripened wheat. Furthermore, since the rain water will inundate fields, a survey is needed to see the impact of the weather,” an expert explained.

“Wheat crop sown early, which was almost at ripening stage and nearing harvest, will suffer the most due to the heavy spell of rain,” said Patiala Chief Agriculture Officer Harinder Singh. “For now, the loss will be over 10 per cent. If it rains more, the losses will only go up,” he added.

“My watermelon and vegetable crops have been completely submerged in water for the past two days and there is hardly a chance that I will be able to recover even 50 per cent of it. It is a complete loss now,” rued Chamkaur Singh of Sanaur. “The rates of veggie in the market will go up in the coming weeks as most of the ripe vegetable crops have been damaged. The pockets where the rain spell was minimum will benefit,” he added.

Farmers said that untimely rain would also lead to a rise in the prices of fodder as water has got accumulated in the fields. Farmers have sought immediate relief for their crop loss and alleged they have not received any compensation for such losses in the past.

“The government should asses the losses and ensure that adequate compensation is passed to us,” said a farmer. Senior officers confirmed that they have sought a detailed report from the field officers to ascertain the actual loss.

Source - https://www.tribuneindia.com