Although the Met Department maintains that the monsoon may revive by July 16, the contingency plan drawn out in 2002 is being dusted and sent to the affected areas. While the actual damage due to ‘‘moisture stress’’ in the fields will only be known when the teams despatched to the affected areas report back, the the 2002 handbook is proving to be a boon. It lists the alternate crops that can be planted in the event of rain not coming even upto August 15, week by week for the entire kharif season. ‘‘In Rajasthan, an advisory has already gone out that says that if jowar cannot be sown, the farmers should sow moong or gowar,’’ said S P Tiwari, ADG (Seeds), ICAR. The plan even lists the varieties that can be used by each of these vulnerable regions in drought-like situation. This information is being disseminated through agro-advisories through Krishi Vigyan Kendras, the mass media and the Indian Council for agricultural research websites. Areas of serious concern this time are Telangana, Rayalseema, Marathwada, Western Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan where the rains have failed for three weeks running. All the states are not affected but the country as a whole has received 90% of the average rainfall. Crops where sowing is behind schedule in these areas are paddy, coarse cereals, sugarcane and pulses. Agriculture Commissioner C D Mayee said there will be a problem for the soyabean crop if there are no rains till July 20. Such problems could also arise for cotton after July 20 in the absence of rains in Vidarbha and Marathwada. Around 90 per cent of the groundnut has been sown in Saurashtra which could survive without rains for 10 more days. According to the figures released by the Ministry, sowing for coarse cereals is 88 lakh hectares, a major shortfall of 24 lakh hectares compared to 112 lakh hectares. The shortfall includes 8.0, 12.0 and 4.0 lakh hectares under jowar, bajra and maize respectively. In case of oilseeds, the sowing at 74.85 lakh hectares against 73.15 lakh hectares in the corresponding period last year, is marginally higher but the entire standing crop is at the mercy of the rainfall pattern of the next 10 days. Another major shortfall has been reported in pulses where the area sown till date is 19.4 lakh hectares compared to 35.0 lakh hectares. In sugarcane, the sown area is 37 lakh hectares compared to 45 lakh hectares during the corresponding period of 2003-4. ‘‘It is only when the field reports comes in from these states will the government know how much damage has been done to the standing crop.’’ said Radha Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture. Cabinet Secretary B K Chaturvedi has asked for a ‘‘contingency plan’’ to be drawn from all the ministries concerned. ‘‘Today, we had a meeting, it is an advance preparation for those areas were rainfall is less. We looked at the stock of grains and allocations made,’’ said Chaturvedi. The meeting was attended by Secretaries of the departments of food, drinking water, women and child welfare and rural development.
