Paddy plantation delayed due to late monsoon, poor irrigation, say GB Nagar farmers

Noida A delay in the southwest monsoon and poor water supply in irrigation canals have taken a toll on the farmers in the district, who foresee losses in the production of basmati rice amid a 15-day postponement in paddy plantation

Noida A delay in the southwest monsoon and poor water supply in irrigation canals have taken a toll on the farmers in the district, who foresee losses in the production of basmati rice amid a 15-day postponement in paddy plantation.

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Rice requires a lot of water to grow and is the major agricultural produce for the Gautam Budh Nagar district, with a variety of basmati rice cultivated widely.

District farmers said that they have paddy plants in their nurseries, or have revived from the state government, but to shift and plant those in the fields involve risks.

Though the officials said that there are enough means of irritation, farmers — especially those without a tube well of their own — deferred.

“Paddy is the main crop of the year, and we are totally dependent on the rains. The 15-day delay in the monsoon will directly affect our produce, and we are worried about it,” said Pradeep Dhalia, a farmer from Greater Noida’s Sonpur village.

The plantation of the rice paddy usually starts in the last week of June and concludes around July 10-15, according to the farmers.

“We have alternatives such as using diesel pumping sets for irrigation. Due to the high cost of diesel, it may cost me around ₹1,500-2,000 a day to irrigate 10 bighas of land. If I plant paddy through this method, I will have to keep irrigating for a week to keep the fields soaked and the plantation alive. This would cost me a fortune,” said Sanjiv Saini, a farmer from Greater Noida’s Saini village.

Devendra Kasana, a farmer from Sunpura village, said, “Our nursery is ready, but water isn’t reaching our village through the canal as the channels are not being maintained. The plantation process should have been started by June-end, but it could not due to these circumstances. We will face losses this year, but there’s nobody to help us.”

“In most of this side of the country, especially Uttar Pradesh, paddy plantation starts around June 22 and concludes by July 12. However, a lot of farmers are dependent on rains as field channels often dry up, not just in Gautam Budh Nagar, but across cities as well. As for farmers planting basmati, the produce is already lesser. While 1.5 acres of land yield about 50-60 quintals of hybrid rice, the same land would have only 30-35 quintals of basmati rice this year,” said Umesh Chandra Pandey, a Sitapur-based farmer.

Officials, however, claimed that everything is under control.

“Smaller channels get water alternatively, i.e., every 15 days. There are 69 irrigation canals in the city. They have enough water for irrigation,” said a senior official of the irrigation department, requesting anonymity.

According to the agriculture department, while “irrigation is out of its jurisdiction”, it feels that the “plantation could be done right in time”.

“The plantation could be done right in time as there are a number of private and public tube wells and irrigation canals. A number of farmers also have diesel gensets. We have also ensured that enough crops are ready in our nursery, and we have given those to a lot of farmers in the first week of July,” said Manveer Singh, deputy director (agriculture), Gautam Budh Nagar.

“In 2020, Gautam Budh Nagar produced 430,000 quintals of basmati that was sold between ₹3,300 and ₹3,500 per quintal. Rice is the main crop of the city, followed by millet and maize,” he added.

According to the officials, basmati rice is produced over 15,150 hectares of land, while hybrid rice over 200 hectares in the district.

Meanwhile, according to weather analysts, the monsoon is likely to arrive between July 10 and 12.

“The monsoon usually arrives around June 27, however, it got delayed this year due to dry westerly winds cutting the trough to Himalayan foothills. We expect it to arrive by July 12,” said Mahesh Palawat, vice-president, meteorology and climate change, Skymet.