BATHINDA: Hot and humid atmosphere during the sowing season and now the heavy rains, when the picking season is about to start. It is a double whammy for cotton farmers in south western Punjab.
The accumulation of water in cotton farms after the rains in the past three days has damaged crop in Malwa region of Punjab. The farmers have been badly hit as the rains lashed the region when they were about to start picking of cotton.
The cotton crop, which is in flowering stage, is the worst hit. Cotton was sown in about 5.3 lakh hectares in Punjab and as per farmers more than 20% cotton could be damaged due to heavy rains and water accumulation in farms. Widespread damage has been caused in Bathinda, Muktsar and Ferozepur districts of Punjab. The agriculture department officials termed the situation as not that serious but added that more rains could cause damage.
"The rains in cotton belt of Bathinda, Muktsar, Ferozepur and Mansa have led to submerging of the cotton crop in many places at a time when it is ripening fast and plucking season was about to start," said Buta Singh, a farmer of Burjgill village in Bathinda. "I had sown cotton crop in 5 acres and due to heavy rains it has suffered extensive damage," claimed Mohinder Singh in Muktsar. Udekaran sarpanch Gurlab Singh said the cotton crop in about 5,000 acres has been damaged due to water-logging in the fields.
Farmer union BKU Dakonda leader Manjit Singh and labourer union leader Lachman Singh Sewewala said as the cotton crop has seen extensive damage, the state government needs to order special girdawari to compensate the aggrieved farmers. Punjab agriculture department joint director Gurdial Singh said, "The damage to cotton crop due to rains is not widespread. The crop could have been damaged to some extent at places where it was in flowering stage or had ripened, but if more rains continue to lash the region it can cause damage."
Souce:- timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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