KADAPA: Severe rainfall deficiency attributed to the impact of Super El Niño has triggered drought-like conditions across Kadapa district, severely affecting the kharif crop season.
The district administration has submitted proposals to the State government seeking declaration of all 40 mandals as drought-affected.
Farmers, farmers’ organisations and public representatives have been demanding drought declaration and relief measures after the failure of the monsoon.
Following government directions, district officials conducted field-level assessments and submitted a detailed drought report to Collector Dr. Sridhar Cherukuri.
After examining the report, the Collector recommended that all 40 mandals in the district be declared drought-affected.
Farmers are now awaiting the state government’s decision, hoping that the declaration will enable them to receive relief and support for taking up cultivation during the rabi season.
Officials said the government was examining drought reports submitted from across the state and was expected to announce the drought-affected mandals on October 1.
Farmers had prepared their lands and arranged seeds and fertilisers expecting adequate kharif rains.
However, no significant spell of rainfall was received after the commencement of the kharif season.
The poor rainfall in the upper catchment areas also affected inflows into the Srisailam reservoir.
With the reservoir failing to reach full capacity, water was not released to irrigation projects and the K.C. Canal, keeping drinking water requirements in mind. As a result, large tracts of farmland remained uncultivated.
Even the limited crops raised with borewell irrigation withered due to high temperatures and lack of moisture, while several borewells also dried up.
The district received only 134.1 mm of rainfall against the normal 312.8 mm, recording a deficit of 57.1 per cent.
Against the normal kharif cultivated area of 76,496 hectares, crops were raised on only 29,201 hectares, or about 38 per cent. Nearly 47,295 hectares remained fallow.
