Karnataka: Crop losses follow record July sowing

BENGALURU: The rains over the past two months have had a contrasting impact on farmers: good showers in July brought cheer as sowing rose by 20 per cent, but the August downpour damaged crops spread over 1.4 lakh hectares.
According to the state agriculture department’s data, sowing has been completed on nearly 70 lakh hectares out of the 73 lakh hectares of cultivable land in Karnataka. This is a record, given the circumstances.
“The coronavirus pandemic has not deterred farmers from carrying out their regular activity. The area with kharif planting, till August third week, has increased by 20 per cent compared to the average of the past five years average,” said agriculture minister B C Patil.
The third month of monsoon is underway and officials are confident that the state will exceed the sowing area target in a couple of months. But torrential showers have caused problems in several districts. “Though the timely onset of southwest monsoon initially brought cheer to farmers, incessant rains in the past 25 days and resultant flash floods and landslides have caused crop damage and misery in 15 districts,” said an agriculture department official.
Belagavi, Bagalkot, Dharwad, Haveri and Kodagu are among the worst-hit districts, where various crops are under floodwaters. “Most farmers went for early sowing this time because of good rains in June-July. But excessive rainfall in August has had an adverse impact,” said another official, who has toured some affected regions. “Standing paddy in lowlying areas has suffered damage because of prolonged accumulation of water in the past few days. Maize and soya crops, which are highly water sensitive, may see stunted growth.”
Basavarajappa, a farmer in Gangavati, said things were not that bad. “Standing paddy can survive in accumulated water for up to a week. We are expecting a good yield this year,” he said.
The positive outlook may change as weather experts have predicted more rainfall in September. “There is a flood-like situation in some districts. Though water has started to recede from fields, the September forecast is a concern,” said Manoj Rajan, commissioner, Karnataka State Disaster Management Authority. “We have expedited the survey to assess the damage in several districts. I personally visited many places where crops have been damaged and farmers are in distress. We will do our best to ensure they get early relief.”
Meanwhile, agriculture minister BC Patil said the government was working on securing urea stock for the upcoming rabi season. “We had a meeting with Union fertiliser minister DV Sadananda Gowda in Delhi on Thursday and requested for additional 1 lakh tonne of urea to replenish the state buffer stock. In the kharif season, too, we ensured there was no shortage of urea,” he said.