TIRUCHY: Even though the government set a target of 2,717 acres for pulse cultivation in the district this summer season, the agriculture department has exceeded the target area by 240 acres. The season's target area is 161 acres more as compared to last year.
Despite the prevailing water scarcity for nearly a year in delta districts, including Tiruchy, farmers in the district have achieved the target with the help of available groundwater tables and adopting micro-irrigation techniques, officials said.
Gingelly crops are extensively cultivated in the Lalgudi block of the Tiruchy district, followed by Manapparai, Marungapuri and Uppiliyapuram blocks. Farmers in certain parts of Lalgudi block have raised black gram crops too. In several parts of Manapparai and Marungapuri blocks, farmers have cultivated groundnut and black gram, officials said.
The target for this summer season was to cultivate gingelly on 1,976 acres, black gram and other pulses on 494 acres and groundnut on 247 acres. However, farmers have exceeded expectations by covering 2,957 acres, surpassing the targeted area of 2,717 acres, said N Kannan, deputy director of agriculture (pulses).
"Despite water shortage, farmers from Tiruchy district managed to grow crops on 2,957 acres this summer," the deputy director told TNIE. Currently, all crops are in the flowering stage in the district. While it takes 90 days to harvest groundnut, the other two crops can be harvested within 60 days, he said.
"It is expected that gingelly and pulses will be ready for harvest by the first week of July," Kannan stated. "With limited groundwater tables, farmers have started adopting micro-irrigation techniques such as drip irrigation and sprinklers to use water judiciously," he said. Seven regulated markets are present in the Tiruchy district, and facilities at Lalgudi and Thuvarankuruchi blocks are seeing an increase in footfalls during the harvest season, he added.