Rain wreaks havoc on mandis, flattens crops

Mohit Khanna

Patiala, October 16

Strong winds, heavy rainfall, and hailstorms at isolated places wreaked havoc in the region today. Farmers complained of the flattening of standing crops here and in Fatehgarh Sahib District. Besides, the harvested paddy crop kept in open mandis (grain markets) also got wet due to rain and waterlogging. A hailstorm damaged the crop in at least 10 villages of Ghanaur in the district.

Confirming this, Chief Agricultural Officer (CAO) Gurnam Singh said that reports of hailstorms in the standing rice fields were received from 10 villages in the Ghanaur area.

“We have sent teams to assess the damage caused to the crop, and reports pertaining to losses will be submitted to the authorities concerned,” said Gurnam Singh. He added that strong winds coupled with rainfall have led to the flattening of crops in a few places, which may lead to a 2 percent discoloration of crops.

Director Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) at Rauni here, Gurupdesh Kaur, said that the rain would delay the harvesting process for a few more days. It would also lead to the flattening of crops in the fields that were irrigated recently.

Adding to the woes of the farmers, the lifting process has been stalled at the Anaj Mandi here. Naresh Mittal, general secretary of the Arhtiya Association, Anaj Mandi, said that the lifting process has been stalled due to the strike by rice millers engaged in the milling of non-basmati varieties for government agencies. The millers have gone on strike against the Food Corporation of India guidelines regarding the acceptance of only fortified rice kernels (FRK) for an indefinite period.

Darbara Singh, a farmer, was seen running over the fate of his harvest crop at Anaj Mandi. He said that half of the harvest crop was getting soiled due to waterlogging in the mandis. He feared that the inclement weather might damage the remaining crop.