UPSC Practice recommends Distressed farmers knock on Delhi’s doors seeking a helping hand.
According to experts, India will see a shortfall of production like last year when the heat wave arrived early and affected wheat production.
Excessive unseasonal rain in the third week of March in the major wheat-producing states, including Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, has hit the farmers hard. In most of these states, the wheat crop was either ready for harvesting or was harvested and kept in the open for threshing. The rain has destroyed large parts of both. It has also adversely affected the other rabi crops such as mustard, black gram, etc. As per estimates, the country had received 246% more than the normal rainfall.
Farmers were earlier troubled by scanty winter rainfall. The winter rain and the moist air help grains gain size. The lack of sufficient winter rain and the early onset of hot spells have played havoc in the rabi season. What followed has been worse. The unseasonal rain with hailstorms and strong winds has flattened the crop. Reports show that the wheat now arriving in the market finds few takers due to its poor quality. Farmers are forced to sell their low-quality yield at a lower price than the minimum support price.
According to experts, India will see a shortfall of production like last year when the heat wave arrived early and affected wheat production. Scientists say that the inclement weather will impact the quality of wheat crops, if not quantity. However, agri-commodity analysts say it will impact both. The United States Department of Agriculture has predicted a 4% shortfall in wheat production in India. According to the Directorate of Economics and Statistics, 85% of India’s wheat is produced by five states—UP (32.42%), MP (16.08%), Punjab (15.65%), Haryana (11.28%) and Rajasthan (10.08%). These states have been hit the hardest with the weather playing truant.
Even before the weather hit farmers starting mid-March, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, an umbrella body of farmers’ organisations from across the country, had announced its plan to stage a demonstration in Delhi to press the Union government to fulfil the assurances given in writing on December 9, 2021, and to take effective steps to mitigate the ever-increasing crisis faced by farmers. The government needs to take effective steps to rescue farmers. What is at stake here is not only their well-being but also the nation’s food security and the stability of the price of food grain.
Courtesy: The New Indian Express – Editorials
