Unseasonal rains force paddy farmers to go for premature harvest in Telangana’s Karimnagar

However, they are facing troubles selling the crop since the purchasing centres have not yet started functioning in the district

Karimnagar: In the wake of unseasonal rains, farmers have started premature harvesting of paddy to protect the crop from rains. However, they are facing troubles selling the crop since the purchasing centres have not yet started functioning in the district.

Anticipating a water shortage, some of the farmers had sowed the crop in the beginning of the Yasangi season. In some areas, crops were infected by pests such as stem-borer. The ryots again sowed paddy by destroying the infected crop. Though the crop cultivated in the beginning of the season was ready for harvesting, the paddy sowed late requires a few more days. It needs one week to 10 days to harvest since the crop is in the final stage.

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However, unseasonal rains, which are damaging standing crops in other areas, are forcing the farmers to harvest the crop prematurely. Standing crops were damaged as many areas in the State experienced downpours in the last few days. Though they have protected the crop with the early harvest, they are facing troubles selling the crop since paddy procurement centres have not started so far.

After harvesting the crop, ryots are directly shifting it to the procurement centres to dry up since 17 per cent moisture or less is mandatory to purchase paddy by the government machinery. Though tarpaulins are being used to protect crops from rains, there are incidents of paddy soaked in rain water in some areas. They want the government to open the procurement centres a little before schedule to protect the crop. Otherwise, their investment and hard work would go waste, they said.

Speaking to Telangana Today, a farmer from Manakondur, Srinivas Reddy, wanted the government to start purchasing by opening the procurement centres immediately.

Stating that there was nothing wrong in opening the centres a few days earlier, he said it would help the ryots protect their crops. Otherwise, the entire investment as well as hard work would go to waste, he opined.