Flood and rain worsened the situation
17-Aug-2024 12:04 PM
Last year, in the month of August, most parts of the country were facing severe drought, due to which the Kharif crops suffered a lot. In contrast,
this year the month of August is witnessing excessive rainfall and due to excessive rain in important agricultural producing areas of many states,
the possibility of damage to Kharif crops has once again increased. So far, at the national level, there has been 5-6 percent more rain than the normal average,
while the activity of the monsoon is still intact. In the future, torrential rain is also being predicted in September.
The Meteorological Department has expressed the possibility of the La Nina weather cycle becoming active by the end of the current month (August), due to which the southwest monsoon can get a solid basis to increase its intensity, mobility and activity.
The rain of September is not considered good for the early sown Kharif crops because this is the time for these crops to mature.
Meanwhile, heavy rains in July-August have caused floods in many areas and crops in low-lying areas have been submerged.
This is not a good sign for the farmers and the country. In the areas or weather subdivisions where there was a lack of rain earlier, clouds have started thundering and raining.
Similarly, in those areas where heavy rain has already occurred, monsoon is active there too. There is a greater risk of damage to crops in such areas.
This time, the monsoon's blessings are being seen more than required in the major producing states of pulses and oilseeds crops like Maharashtra,
Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Dams, reservoirs, rivers, streams and other water sources are full of water.
Although at the national level, the production area of Kharif crops is ahead of last year, due to which generally better production can be expected, but in the areas where flood and rain water has filled up and there is no proper arrangement for its drainage,
the future of crops remains uncertain. The damage is being assessed. It is worth noting that pulses, oilseeds and cotton crops are more sensitive to flood and waterlogging, so there will be more danger to them.
Young plants of coarse cereals can also fall prey to this, but the rice crop is expected to benefit from the rain overall. At present, heavy rains are occurring in many parts of the country or alerts have been issued for the same.