GUNTUR/KAKINADA: Many crops including paddy, maize, jowar and banana raised in 500 hectares were damaged in Guntur district due to heavy rain on Tuesday.As per initial estimates, the crops were damaged in 57 hectares of paddy, 240 hectares of maize and 64 hectares of jowar in Guntur district. The farmers were shocked with untimely rains when they were anticipating a bumper crop this year. Agriculture Minister Somireddy Chandramohan Reddy directed the officials to guide farmers in saving the standing crops. He inspected damaged banana garden and other crops in Pathuru, Gundimeda and Tadepalli mandals in Guntur district to assess the damage to the crops so that the farmers would be able to apply for crop insurance.
Agriculture Department joint director M Vijaya Bharati submitted a preliminary report on damaged crops in seven mandals of Guntur district to the government. APSPDCL SE B Jayabharat Rao said that more than 100 electric poles were damaged due to heavy rain in Guntur district and added that Transco officials have started power supply restoration works. The peasant leaders said that an unexpected spell of moderate to heavy rain accompanied by gusty winds lashed many parts of the district compounding their woes.
Rain also lashed various parts of East Godavari district on Tuesday causing damage to standing crops and a few houses. Besides cashew, other crops like banana and mango have been damaged due to rain. Banana crop raised in 40 hectares was damaged at Kirlampudi and Pithapuram mandals. The horticulture officials said that crops worth `10 lakh have been damaged. “Tuesday’s rain caused extensive fruit dropping in our mango plantation leaving us in dire straits,” deplored Guravaiah, a farmer.
Sewage water entered many houses in low-lying areas in the district causing hardship to the residents. Several trees and electricity poles were uprooted. Electricity supply was disrupted in many villages and officials are working to restore power supply. When the farmers preserved the produce in heaps in the farm fields itself after harvesting and threshing and were waiting for the traders to lift the produce, the rain damaged it. The farmers demanded that the government extend the crop insurance facility to the paddy and horticulture crops damaged due to rain.
Mango, paddy crops hit by heavy rain
The untimely rain, accompanied by heavy gale, in East Godavari and Guntur districts on Tuesday spelt disaster for horticulture and paddy crops
Mango bore the brunt of the nature’s fury. Fruit dropping was reported on a large-scale in both the districts in the upland tracts where the mango was the principal crop
Besides mango, other horticulture crops such as cashew, banana etc suffered an extensive damage
The rain delivered a serious blow to the paddy growers at a time when they were all set to reap the crop
The latest bout of unseasonal rain dashed the farmers’ hopes of at least recovering the cost of cultivation
Rainwater gushed into low-lying residential areas at Vatticherukuru, Rajupalem, Pedakakani, Savalyapuram and Atchampet mandals in Guntur district