Vijayawada: Cyclone Mandous sparks jitters among farmers
Farmers packing their threshed grains into gunny bags in view of the cyclone, at Bommuluru village in Krishna district
Vijayawada (NTR District): Cyclone Mandous, which is likely to cross the coast between East Godavari and Nellore, is scaring the farmers. Crop harvesting, especially paddy, is at peak stage now and all the farmers have been engaged in agrarian activities like threshing and transportation of the yield. At this crucial time, formation of cyclone is frightening them.
In fact, farmers are used to face cyclones, crop damages and debts for the past few years and it became a common phenomenon for them. Still, farmers continue cultivation with hopes. The same fate is going to repeat for them this season also. Actually, this year paddy harvest and yield are too good compared to previous years. Pouring cold water on the hopes of farmers, cyclone and heavy rain issues are distracting them greatly.
So far, in both Krishna and NTR districts, only 23 per cent of paddy was harvested. According to agriculture authorities, paddy was cultivated in six lakh acres in both the districts - around four lakh acres in Krishna and two lakh acres in NTR district. 90,000 acres of paddy has been harvested in Krishna and over 40,000 acres harvested in NTR district so far. Around 77% paddy crops are in fields and harvesting work is yet to be done. Generally, paddy works will be completed by the end of December every year.
Meanwhile, Civil Supplies authorities have procured 5,000 MT of paddy in NTR district and 48,000 MT in Krishna district so far through Rythu Bharosa Kendrams (RBK).
On the other hand, IMD predicted that due to the Mandous cyclone, south coastal districts like East Godavari, West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, Nellore and Prakasam districts are likely to get heavy to very heavy rains along with ghastly gales of 90 km per hour. Due to this cyclone, rains will lash the State from Wednesday to Sunday.
The worried farmers are engaging more labourers for harvesting while some others are engaging machinery for the purpose. Also, they voluntarily transporting the threshed grains to millers.
Agricultural and Civil Supplies officers also alerted farmers in the wake of cyclone. Agriculture department officials suggested the farmers not to harvest for the next three days. Also, wide publicity is being given through the authorities concerned to farmers.
Speaking to The Hans India, Krishna district agriculture department Joint Director Manohar Rao, Krishna district civil supply manager Sridhar and NTR district civil supply manager Siva Rama Murthy said that they have already alerted farmers regarding cyclone. The ground level officers told the farmers not to harvest paddy for a few days. "We arranged vehicles for shifting paddy harvest to millers immediately. Gunny bags are being arranged and other measures are being taken," they added.