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Rain, hailstorm damage wheat, mustard and barley crops in Haryana
Farmers said on Friday that fields have been inundated due to the rain and hailstorm
Unseasonal rainfall and hailstorm have damaged mustard, barley and wheat crops in Haryana’s Rohtak, Bhiwani, Sirsa, Fatehabad and Charkhi Dadri districts, leaving farmers distressed.
Farmers said on Friday that fields have been inundated due to the rain and hailstorm.
“The rains have severely damaged crops. For the third time, we have to sow wheat. This is a big loss for farmers. This might benefit some farmers but definitely most of us have been affected,” said Suresh Kumar, a farmer in Rohtak district.
Some farmers said the sowing of wheat had been delayed this time due to shortage of labour.
“The unseasonal rainfall and hailstorm have left us worried. As it is, the process of sowing wheat is running behind schedule due to lack of labour. No farmer has benefited, the inclement weather has only caused us loss,” said Chattar Singh, another farmer from Charkhi Dadri district.
Farmers said the unseasonal rains have damaged crops multiple times, forcing them to start the sowing again. “It took us three days to sow the wheat which was all destroyed by the weather. Now we have to start sowing again,” said farmer Brijesh Kumar.
Gurjant Singh of Sirsa’s Farwai village said, “Heavy rain in the last two days has destroyed my mustard crop. I have requested the officials to check the condition of my farm and start the process of compensation under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY).”
The weather department has forecast rain and thunderstorm in Punjab and Haryana till Saturday. Next week, fog in the morning and partly cloudy skies later in the day are forecast in both the states.
ML Khichar, head of department (HOD) of meteorology and agriculture expert at Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agriculture University (CCSHAU) told Hindustan Times, “Light to moderate rain is expected on Saturday also.Farmers are advised to stop watering their field.”
