Rain, hailstorm wreak havoc in Telangana’s Siddipet; crops on 9,150 acres damaged

Nanganur and Chinnakodur mandals worst hit; standing paddy crop on 6,321 acres and mango orchards on 1,141 acres damaged

Siddipet: Untimely rain coupled with hailstorm wreaked havoc in nine mandals of Siddipet district with Nanganur and Chinnakodur mandals being the most affected.

After primary enquiry, agriculture and horticulture officials put the crop loss at 9,150 acres. While crops in Nanganur mandal were damaged on 4,941 acres, farmers in Chinnakodur suffered crop losses on 2,156 acres. Narayanraopet, Siddipet Urban, Cheriyal, Maddur, Dhoolmitta, Bejjanki and Kondapak mandals also witnessed rain in the early hours of Thursday.

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The rain started at 2.30 am and continued for more than an hour. Farmers rushed to their respective fields and were shocked as more than 50 per cent of the paddy had fallen due to the hailstorm.

The mango crop also witnessed heavy damage. The farmers said hailstones were much larger than mangoes that had fallen, causing great devastation. The standing paddy crop, which was ready for harvest, was damaged on 6,321 acres followed by mango orchards, which were damaged on 1,141 acres. Vegetable crops were damaged on 1,654 acres across the nine mandals.

Agriculture officials said 4,926 farmers were affected due to the rain on Thursday morning. The district also witnessed rains again in the evening in several parts. Since the IMD has predicted more rains over the next few days in erstwhile Medak district, the farmers are a worried lot.

The farmers have urged the government to extend some support by declaring compensation. Officials will conduct a detailed enumeration soon to find out the exact crop loss after the rains.

Paddy hit hard in Vemulawada rural mandal

Unseasonal rain coupled with hailstorm damaged standing crops in Vemulawada rural mandal. Heavy rain was recorded in the mandal on Wednesday night. Paddy crop, ready for harvesting, was damaged in Bollaram, Lingampalli, Hanumajipeta, Marripalli and Nagaiahpalli villages. The crop was damaged in about 100 acres in Bollaram and Lingampalli villages alone.

Farmers brought the crop damage issue to the notice of local MLA Adi Srinivas, who instructed agriculture officials to assess the damage. Officials are set to visit the villages to enumerate the damage.