M A I N   N E W S

Paddy, cotton crops survive heavy rainfall
Sarbjit Dhaliwal
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 10
While the heavy rain in various parts of Punjab in the past 48 hours has provided the much sought after relief to the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB), which was grappling with the problem of power crisis for the past several days, fortunately, it has not caused any noticeable damage to the kharif crop anywhere in the state.

In fact, it has also provided relief to the farming community in the rainfed Kandi belt where crops had started withering because of the prolonged dry spell. Informed sources in the Agriculture Department said though the cotton belt got heavy rain yesterday, but it did not cause any damage to the cotton crop. The paddy crop, which is almost on the harvesting stage, has also not been affected much. However, as rainfall at certain areas was followed by fast blowing winds, paddy crop in those areas has been flattened. By and large, the Kharif crop has survived heavy bout of rainfall so far.

Punjab is expecting a bumper paddy and cotton crop this year. In fact, farmers say a new record of paddy yield would be set up in the state this year. They say the crop has remained free from any major disease and the yield is expected to be the highest this year because the weather in the past days has remained conducive to the crop. Almost the same is true in case of the cotton crop. It has also come up well and is now at the fruitage stage. In fact, at certain places picking of early sown cotton has already started. Farmers had starting bringing the crop to various markets, especially in the Bathinda, Abohar and Fazilka belt.

However, farmers pray that it will be better if the clouds disappear from the horizon at the earliest. More spells of rain can prove harmful for both paddy and cotton which are reaching the harvesting stage fast. Official procurement of paddy will start on October 1. In fact, paddy will also start arriving in various markets in the last week of this month.

The PSEB authorities, which had diverted power supply to the farm sector by imposing prolonged power cuts on industrial and domestic sectors, has now restored power partially to the industrial sector because consumption of power in the agriculture sector has decreased substantially following rain. Sources said in the next two weeks, there will be normal power supply to the industrial and domestic sector as there will not be much need for power in the farming sector.