BERHAMPUR/JEYPORE: The low pressure-induced rain has emerged as a serious threat to paddy crops leaving farmers of Ganjam and Koraput increasingly alarmed.
Farmers of Ganjam, who were threatened by untimely rains last week, are now in a fix as fresh showers on Friday compounded their crop loss worries. They said after the fresh spell of showers, crop fields have been inundated by rainwater.
A farmer of the Khamarigaon area in Digapahandi block Simanchal Choudhury said the rain has raised fears of crop loss among farmers who were waiting for their harvested paddy to dry in fields before threshing. Rainwater has now entered the crop fields leaving farmers in distress.
Echoing similar views, Chakrapani Tarai of Chhatrapur block said to drain out rainwater from fields, farmers have dug small outlets. But the crop has become wet, which is the main worry now. “As the IMD has predicted rains for another day or two, it will lead to extensive crop damage as the grains have started falling from the stem. Besides, the paddy will be discoloured and not match the FAQ. It may cause heavy loss to farmers,” he rued.
While agriculture experts said more rains will pose problems for paddy due to moisture at the time of lifting, farmers urged the administration to relax the FAQ norms and save them from losses.
However, civil supplies officer (CSO) Puspa Munda said there is no possibility for any relaxation. Paddy procurement in Ganjam will start from December 23 and 1,46,500 farmers have registered to sell their produce. Over 1,39 lakh tokens have already been given to farmers. The rest tokens will be distributed once the survey to detect fake farmers is completed.
Similarly in Koraput, the rains halted paddy harvesting activities as farmers scurried to save their crops.
Sources said moderate to heavy rains lashed different parts of the tribal region when harvesting and threshing of paddy was at its peak. The kharif harvesting process started in Jeypore, Kundra, Borigumma and Kotpad under Jeypore sub-division in the first week of December. Around 50 per cent of the paddy crops in 45,000 ha of land were harvested till date. However, the rains put a stop on all farm activities.
A farmer of Ambaguda village Rajesh Madala said many farmers had left their paddy crop in the fields to dry after harvesting. As the crops have become wet due to the rain, there is a possibility of damage to the grains. “Procurement is underway in the district and we can’t wait for another seven to 10 days to get rid of the moisture from the harvested paddy,” he said.
Manoj Patra of Kunturkhal village said farmers will suffer huge losses due to moisture in the paddy. “We are ready to take the paddy stock to local mandis for procurement. However, the rains have damaged the paddy badly and it may reflect on its FAQ,” he added.
Paddy procurement commenced on December 11 in the Koraput district.