Advisory, app help farmers to save crops from rainfall

Kota: While a large number of farmers are crying over crop damage due to recent untimely rains and demanding compensation, several other farmers, at the same time, have succeeded in saving their crops from damage just by reading the rains predictions on weather apps or following the advisory from Agriculture Research Station (ARS).
On basis of advisory and forecast of rain, they postponed their harvesting schedule as harvested bundles of crop were more likely to suffer damage than that of the standing crop.
Farmers would rely on predictions by oracles of Inderdev, Bheruji, Mataji or other folk deity for rain and weather. Now, the farmers in the village talk of online weather predictions as soon as they wake up and reach the village tea stall for first morning tea,” said Dhulichand Borda, Kota district president of Akhil Bhartiya Kisan Sabha.
He claimed after reading online weather forecasts on recent rain, he decided to sell his soya bean harvest on the 3rd day after harvesting while the crop required to be dried under sun for two more days and sold the crop at MSP in Grain Mandi.
“Relying on the online prediction of recent rain, I decided not to start harvesting soya bean crops over 22 bighas. However, it rained heavily this time and my entire soya bean crop is currently soaked in rain-water filled in the field. Still, I will be able to reap a little profit from the soaked soya bean crop as the entire crop is not damaged,” said Satyanarayan Sharma, a farmer in Golana village in Jhalawar. Sharma asserted weather app predictions are significant for taking precautionary measures to prevent crop damage by rain.
Another farmer from Devpura in Bundi, Sheojilal Gurjar said, “The weather app forecast on rain is the first query by a farmer with morning tea at the village tea stall and even an illiterate farmer asks of online weather report, because he finds his livelihood ultimately associated with on rain predictions and weather app, which are now more accurate than weather forecast 5 years ago.” However, Gurjar claimed the recent 2-3 days of consistent rain in Hadauti was heavier than expected as it damaged a considerable amount of crop.
The farmers still need to be educated and made aware of online weather forecast technology and terminology as most of them fail to comprehend and analyse the percentage of precipitation in their area, said another farmer. “Weather advisory is issued by Agriculture Research Station (ARS) Ummedganj, Kota twice a week and the farmers associated with ARS are directly delivered the advisory through SMS, which helps them take measures to prevent the crop from damage as around 95 percent of forecast come true,” said Ramesh Chand Jain, deputy director, agriculture department.