With no water or rain, fields go dry in kharif

Srikakulam: Long dry spell and lack of proper irrigation facilities to tail-end and upland areas in Palasa and ItchapuramAssembly constituencies have crippled agriculture. Even in July second week, kharif paddy and other crops’ cultivation works are yet to start here. Paddy nurseries dried due to dry spell and high temperatures. In these two Assembly constituencies, paddy and other crops are being cultivated in more than one lakh acre. The two constituencies cover Itchapuram, Kaviti, Kanchili, Sompeta, Mandasa, Palasa and Vajrapukotturu mandals. Paddy, groundnut, vegetable crops are being cultivated during every kharif season here.

In the wake of lack of rains and water facility paddy nurseries have withered away in Baruva, Zinkibadra, Korlam, Korni, Haripuram, Ambugam and other villages. Farmers are losing their hopes on survival of paddy nurseries due to hot weather and lack of rains. If these paddy nurseries were damaged, farmers will be unable to cultivate paddy even through direct sowing methods as seeds are not available with the agricultural department. This situation so dire that farmers may lose a crop season.