Cool weather freeze wheat inflow at mandis

“So far,we have wheat has arrived from Patiala,Ropar,Fatehgarh Sahib,Mohali,Barnala,Sangrur,Ludhiana,Ferozepur,Faridkot and Mansa. It is one per cent of last year’s and an all-time low. We expect the arrivals to pick up in three to four days. This is likely to lead to a glut in mandis but the state has capacity to handle up to eight lakh MT of arrivals per day,” said SS Randhawa,GM (Enforcement) of Punjab Mandi Board.

The dip in the temperature has delayed harvesting of the crop as the grain needs bright sunny days and warmer nights to mature. Experts at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) in Ludhiana,however,feel that the delay in harvesting and procurement should not be a cause of concern.

“Last year,the relatively high temperatures in February and March brought down wheat yield. But this year,the climate has been exceptionally good for wheat. The cool temperatures will improve productivity of the crop and there is considerable time lag of two months between wheat harvesting and sowing of the kharif crop. So the delay should not cause any concern,” said Dr MS Gill,Director (Extension Services) PAU.

The only cause for worry is the possibility of rains and hailstorm.

“This time of the year is prone to hailstorms,which can adversely affect the crop at maturity stage. The skies are reported to be cloudy in some areas of the state but a little amount of rain will not do any damage. Instead it would marginally improve the yield. Rains can only cause problems where wheat has been sown late. Since nearly 90 per cent of the crop is at its maturity and most farmers now use combine harvesters,there seems to be no danger from delayed harvesting of the crop,” he added.