Punjab: Rain, thunderstorm damage wheat, harvesting takes a hit
Rain and strong winds accompanied by thunderstorms on Wednesday night have damaged the wheat crop in several parts of Punjab, with farmers reporting crop flattening in multiple districts. The adverse weather has affected harvesting of the mature crop in several areas where lodging (flattening) of wheat plants has been widely reported
Chandigarh : Rain and strong winds accompanied by thunderstorms on Wednesday night have damaged the wheat crop in several parts of Punjab, with farmers reporting crop flattening in multiple districts. The adverse weather has affected harvesting of the mature crop in several areas where lodging (flattening) of wheat plants has been widely reported. Experts warn that the rain could also lead to discoloration of grains, further impacting quality.
While some officials believe the damage may not be widespread, reports from various villages indicate otherwise. According to Randhir Singh, chief agriculture officer of Jalandhar, teams have been dispatched to assess the situation, and no significant damage has been reported in his district so far.
The rain has also caused a drop in temperatures — from 38°C to 32–35°C — which has slowed wheat arrivals in mandis across the state. Officials from the state food and civil supplies department said rain and thunderstorm has disrupted harvesting, and they have advised farmers to expedite harvesting to prevent further losses, as more rain is forecast in the coming days.
Thundershowers were reported in Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Sangrur, Barnala, Mohali, Fatehgarh Sahib, Khanna, Ludhiana, Kapurthala, Jalandhar, Nawanshahr, and Hoshiarpur.
This season, wheat was sown over 34 lakh hectares (around 85 lakh acres) in Punjab. Experts had earlier expected a bumper crop due to ideal weather conditions during the growing season, with gradual temperature increases supporting good grain quality. However, Wednesday night’s storm has raised concerns about final output.
In addition, a fall in temperature during late March and early April had already delayed crop maturity and subsequent arrivals in mandis. Though government procurement agencies began purchasing wheat from April 1, arrivals are significantly lower than previous years, with only 6.24 lakh tonnes received as of Wednesday.
The meteorology department has forecast intermittent rain in parts of the state in the coming days, further increasing risks to the remaining unharvested crop.