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Groundnut, other crops withering
Making a mockery of rain guns introduced last year and notwithstanding the tall claims made by Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, standing crops of groundnut, bajra, millets and tur dal are facing the threat of withering away. Chandrababu was accused of being partial to YSR Kadapa district. In his priority, Anantapur gets precedence over Kadapa district, it is alleged.
Rayachoti: Making a mockery of rain guns introduced last year and notwithstanding the tall claims made by Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, standing crops of groundnut, bajra, millets and tur dal are facing the threat of withering away. Chandrababu was accused of being partial to YSR Kadapa district. In his priority, Anantapur gets precedence over Kadapa district, it is alleged.
Highlights:
- State govt should give equipment to save withering crops, say farmers
- It is alleged that the Chief Minister is giving priority to Anantapur over Kadapa
Last year, the government purchased rain guns, oil engines and other equipment worth Rs 150 crore. Kadapa district officials have 180 oil engines, 360 sprinklers, 242 rain guns and 3,600 pipes at their disposal.While the crops in Kadapa district are withering away, the Chief Minister and his cabinet colleagues are taking part in Yeruvaka programme, the farmers alleged.
After the initial euphoria, the monsoon is also playing truant. Rains experienced, under the influence of the low-pressure area in the Bay of Bengal, were limited only some to pockets in the state. Encouraged by the rains, some farmers raised tur dal, groundnut, bajra, millets but the plants are withering away for want of rains for at least four weeks.
The farmers are apprehensive of losing crops raised under the tube wells if the same condition to prevail further. In Rayachoti, Lakkireddypalli, Pulivendula and Kamalapuram areas groundnut is cultivated in large numbers. Area under the crop is shrinking with each passing year. Of the total cultivated area in the district, groundnut crop did not cross even 20 per cent.
Because of the scanty rainfall, not even 50 per cent of the seeds germinate. Wherever they germinated, the crops are withering away for want of rains. Some of the farmers are disposing of the seeds at weekly shandies apprehending that small worms would infest the seed.
Though rain guns were introduced in Rayachoti last year, the groundnut crop is beyond revival. Farmers have been demanding state government to swing into action immediately and give equipment to farmers to save withering crops. Apart from groundnut crop, area of cultivation of various crops under the borewells has been getting reduced season after the season, but the state government is limited to making tall claims of driving away drought.
