SAMBALPUR: With monsoon playing truant, agricultural activities for paddy crop during the current Kharif season have been affected in the district. As per reports, the district has received 194.11 mm rainfall until August 21 against the normal of 442.4 mm. Of the nine blocks in the district, Bamra received the highest rainfall of 395.90 mm while Jujumura registered the lowest at 93 mm. Similarly, 213.60 mm rainfall was recorded at Rengali block, 211.30 mm at Dhankauda, 208.20 mm at Naktideul, 197.80 mm at Maneswar, 190 mm at Kuchinda, 119.20 mm at Jamankira and 118 mm at Rairakhol.
The district had received 391.58 mm rainfall in July against the normal of 429.5 mm. In June, the rainfall was 276.44 mm against the normal of 221 mm.Though the district received 8.82 per cent less rainfall against the normal in July, the excess rains of about 25 per cent more than the normal recorded in June had helped farmers carry out agricultural activities. However, scanty rainfall in August has compounded the miseries of the farmers.
The Agriculture department has set a target to cultivate paddy over 1,06,800 hectares (ha) of land in the district. Normally, intercultural operation (beusan) and transplantation of paddy seedlings should have been completed by August 15. However, intercultural operation has been carried out over 40,294 ha against the target of 43,079 ha till August 18. Similarly, transplantation of paddy seedlings has been completed over 62,199 ha against the target of 63,721 ha.
Deputy Director of Agriculture, Sambalpur Pradosh Kumar Samal admitted that scanty rainfall in August has affected agricultural activities for paddy crop. He said transplantation will be completed within a couple of days. The farmers have been advised to undertake weeding and use fertiliser on paddy crop where the intercultural operation could not be carried out. There is no drought-like situation in the district and the situation is under control, he added.