Lack of rains, continuing summer heat hamper kharif operations

Rajamahendravaram (East Godavari district): Lack of rains and continuation of summer heat has delayed the process of rice cultivation during the current kharif season.

Though the farmers have started operations in some areas, they complain over lack of supply of water from irrigation which are choked with accumulation of silt and weeds. They say they have been facing several hurdles to begin cultivation of rice in kharif.

Earlier last month, to protect the crop from natural calamities like cyclones and heavy rains, the government has decided to reschedule the period of cultivation during kharif.

As a part of that, irrigation water was released on June 1 to canals in Godavari Delta through the Sir Arthur Cotton Barrage, Dowleswaram. The duration of rice cultivation during kharif is 150 days.

Once plowing and sowing works are completed, cultivation works are done vigorously. Usually, the harvesting of the kharif crop is completed by the first week of November. But till now, even the nurseries and sowing have not been completed across the district.

Due to this, it is not sure if the harvesting in the season will be completed by the first week of December.

High summer temperatures are still being recorded in the district. There is no trace of rain in 80 per cent of areas. In some places, one or two rains fell and some bold farmers started the agricultural work.

Water was released to the canals on June 1 with a massive campaign, but the silt was not removed from the irrigation canals. Horseshoes and weeds have grown up in many irrigation canals and the silt was not removed.

At many places, the water remained stagnant in canals. Due to this, even if the water is released, it does not flow into the entire ayacut and especially tail-end area.

G Srinivasu, a farmer of Bikkavolu, said kharif cultivation works were hampered as there are no rains and no supply of irrigation water from the canals.

In kharif, rice is being cultivated in 18 mandals across East Godavari district. In 13 mandals, cultivation is dependent on borewater. The remaining five mandals depend on canals. Cultivation is done utilising the water of delta canals in Anaparthi, Bikkavolu, Nidadavolu, Undrajavaram and Peravali mandals. Farmers of Anaparthi region Satthi Venkata Reddy, Narayana Reddy and K Rambabu say that they have been facing water shortage due to problems such as power cuts, water drying up in canals and due to extended summer.

About 79,000 hectares of rice is grown in the entire district. For this nurseries should be grown in 3,729 hectares. So far only 3,250 hectares have been made ready. Officials say that the estimated area where sowing has been completed is less than five per cent. In Korukonda and Gokavaram mandals, sowing has not been started so far.

Plowing works are progressing very slowly in some mandals. Meanwhile, Agriculture department officials say that kharif cultivation work is going rapidly in Kovvur, Rajanagaram, Gopalapuram, and Nallajarla mandals.

They are hopeful that in the next 15 days, the sowing will be completely across the district.

In the last kharif and rabi too, there was a campaign about early cultivation. But due to various reasons, the sowing operation was delayed. Subsequently, the farmers faced difficulties due to cyclones and unseasonal rains. The crop got inundated and farmers suffered losses. Even now the delay in launching of kharif cultivation was causing concern among the farmers. They fear that they may suffer crop loss if the harvesting continues till next December.