Rains lash Punjab, Haryana; bring down temperature, threaten crops
Moderate to heavy rains lashed parts of Punjab and Haryana today, bringing down temperatures across the two states.
The rain, accompanied with high velocity winds and hail, which has been sweeping across pan-Haryana since Friday, is now threatening to damage wheat crop productivity.
According to information, rain has been continuing in the entire district. Additionally, about 100 villages in Hisar district which experienced hail too, which poses a threat to the productivity of wheat sown in over 25 lakh hectare and over 5 lakh hectare of mustard crops.
Additional director, agriculture, Suresh Gehlawat, told HT that while it rained in almost the all of Haryana, most of the districts recorded only 3 mm to 9 mm rain which was hardly harmful to the said crops.
Ambala, Kurukshetra, Faridabad, Gurgaon, Rohtak, Panchkula, Yamunanagar and Karnal in Haryana also received rains.
“Nonetheless, the reports of damage to the crops, if any, are still being collected,” he said, adding that while no damage was likely to wheat which had been sown early, there could be little damage to the late (milk stage) sown wheat crop, if the rain, hail or winds remain severe,’’ he said.
Gehlawat also admitted that about 100 villages in a block of Hisar received hail but the extent of damage was yet to be ascertained as the rain was continuing.
Punjab
Moderate to heavy rains lashed parts of Punjab and Haryana today, bringing down temperatures across the two states. Chandigarh has been lashed by heavy rains since morning.
Bathinda, Mohali, Ropar, Jalandhar, Amritsar, Moga, Ludhiana and Patiala in Punjab were among the other places lashed by rains.
According to the MeT department, the maximum temperature also dropped by few notches after the downpour.
Hailstorm also lashed some places in Punjab, including Phagwara, ringing alarm bells for the farmers as it caused some harm to the standing wheat crop.
If heavy rains persist and are followed by strong winds, it could flatten the wheat crop affecting the grain quality. Unseasonal rain is also harmful for other crops.
There were reports of power supply getting disrupted at some places in the region after the heavy rains and strong winds.
Wheat crop flattened
The rain, accompanied by high speed winds, since Friday night have resulted in flattening of wheat crop across the district.
As per Bathinda chief agricultural officer, Nachhattar Singh Aulakh, the district had received 9 mm rain till Saturday morning. Some parts in district also experienced hailstorms too.
Aulakh said the crop had been flattened due to high speed winds but the damage to crop could not be assessed presently as it depended on the weather conditions in coming days.
He further said that the wheat crop sown early had flattened and while wheat which was sown late fared a little better. If the region witnesses clear weather in the coming days, damage could be relatively low, he said.
Jagdish Grover from Krishi Vigiyan Kendra of Punjab Agriculture University (PAU) at Bathinda said that the rain effected sarson, chana, and wheat crops. Sarson crop is ready to be harvested time and has been affected more.