And the perfect example of this unusual behavior in weather can be witnessed by the unseasonal rains in the North Indian plains. Wheat which is a major Rabi crop is produced in this region; specifically the states of Western Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan suffered the plight of unseasonal rainfall heavily.
These rains resulted in flooding of farmlands and flattened the ripening crops such as wheat and mustard. Wheat crops have been worst hit in parts of Punjab, Haryana and the outskirts of Delhi.
“There have been some crop losses in these States due to the unseasonal rains,” said RK Gupta, Director of the Karnal-based Indian Institute of Wheat and Barley Research. Gupta added, “However, the rains may prove beneficial for the late sown wheat crop and thereby could offset this impact, provided the weather remains favourable – say in terms of lower temperatures over the next couple of weeks.”
There may be some relief in terms of harvesting of wheat, which has already begun in States like Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. But a lower domestic wheat crop could spur imports of the cereal because the Central Pool stocks stood lower at 16.8 million tonnes as on March 1, 2016.
“Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh and his team of senior officials have spoken to farm ministers and officials from all affected States. The Minister also spoke to the Delhi Chief Minister. He has assured them that early action will be taken to provide relief,” the official at Agriculture Ministry said.
Last year, in 2015, farmers from 15 states bore the 2 million shortage of crop production. The previous year there was a drop of 7% in wheat production.
“Unirrigated farms might sustain less loss. The highest damage will be in irrigated fields,” said Ajmer Singh, a farmer from Mehma-Serja village in Punjab. He said this regretting his decision to water his standing wheat crops just days before the unseasonal rains ruined his crops.
In Haryana, a senior official from the agriculture department surveyed the plight of the unseasonal rainfall in the wheat farms across the state. And the results showed that the wheat might fall by one-fourth of its production.
The same goes for Uttar Pradesh Indra Pal Sachan, a senior agricultural scientist said, “Hail has hit the matured wheat crop in affected areas. The loss has also been significant in areas where the crop has not matured. The yields might fall by 20-25 per cent.”
“I had irrigated my field in February and was expecting a good yield. Nature’s fury has destroyed my hopes,” said V K Singh, a farmer from Balrampur district.
The staggering fact is the future of these crops looks also in danger as another Western Disturbance is on the verge of appearing over Pakistan. So another spell of rain is on the cards. This will only add to the toll of the plight that the farmers are facing right now
Inputs for this article were taken from Business Standard, Live Mint and The Hindu Business Line.
Image Credit: hindustantimes.com