Deficient rainfall causes worry to farming community
Ambati Anjaiah is a farmer from to Tadkapally village in Siddipet mandal. Siddipet is one of the few mandals in Medak district where the rainfall has been recorded below average and the groundwater levels have gone down.Anjaiah went for gooseberry (amla) crop in 2003 and has since been investing on it, but incurring losses every time. As the yield was not up to the expected level this year too, he has burnt his crop. This is not the first time that the farmers have burnt their crop, but it indicates the severity of the stress and irritation faced by them in the face of the prevailing drought conditions.
Crops sown
During the current season, the farmers have sown different crops in about 3.1 lakh hectares. However, the crop damage was identified in about 1.67 lakh hectares. The loss of crop included paddy 29,000 hectares (sown in 70,000 hectares), maize 58,000 ha (sown in 1 lakh ha), red gram 16,700 ha (sown in 30,000 ha), cotton 57,000 (sown in 86,000 ha) and sugarcane 9,000 ha (sown in 24,000 ha). This is in addition to pulses. According to farmers' federation representative Narasimha Rama Sharma, there are about 5.5 lakh farmers in the district and about 3.5 lakh have incurred losses.
“Red gram was sown in 30,000 hectares and now it is in flowering stage.
Loss feared
However, a major part of crop will be lost if the there are no rains in the next one to two weeks,” says Mr. Sharma. He says that the crop loss may be around Rs. 200 crore.
The farmers are demanding an input subsidy of Rs. 15,000 per hectare so that they can go for next sowing.
“I have lost about Rs. 18,000 after sowing paddy in two-and-a-half acres. I cannot go for farming unless a substantial amount of input subsidy is offered by the government,” said Dhanraj Naik, a tribal farmer of Chetatimmayipalli.
- Of the 5.5 lakh farmers in the district, about 3.5 lakh have incurred losses due to deficient rainfall
- Farmers demand input subsidy of Rs. 15,000 per hectare to help them go for the next sowing
The Hindu
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