Farmers try to cope up with losses

While some of the farmers express optimism that the partially damaged produce would be procured by the traders, maybe at a slightly lower price, others said that they would not like to sell even the germinated produce at a lower price and would use it to feed cattle if it could not be sold in the market.

In Dakala mandi, near Patiala, there were heaps of rain-soaked paddy giving a foul smell. Some of the piles had started germinating. The farmers were critical of the Punjab Mandi Board officials who had failed to act in time to save the paddy when it started raining on October 16.

“Since the Dakala mandi is situated at a lower level, water was standing in here for about two days. The Mandi Board people acted only after repeated requests from farmers and pumped out the rain water,” lamented Harsewak Singh of Tahrain village, near Dakala, who was sitting by his rain-hit stock of paddy.

Ajmer Singh, of Bathoi village in Patiala district, who had brought his paddy produce for sale in the Dakala mandi said that he was taking back his produce. He would wait for it to dry up before marketing it again. He hoped the government would come forward with some scheme to help farmers like him who had suffered heavy losses because of the rain.

A large number of farmers in Dudhar, Bathoi Kalan and Dakala said that they had suffered heavy losses because of the damage caused by the rains to the potato and peas crops.

Daljit Singh of Bathoi Kalan said that his standing crop of potato in about eight acres of land had been damaged in the rain. He said he was replanting his potato crop.

Shamsher Singh of Bathoi Kalan said that the peas which were about to bear fruit got damaged in the rains. This was in addition to the loss of paddy crop that got damaged in the Dakala mandi, he said.

Raj Kumar, a commission agent in the Dakala mandi, told ENS that up to 25 per cent of the paddy stored in the mandis had been damaged in the rains. Some of the heaps had started germinating. Though he had been in business for about 20 years now, he had seen such damage because of unseasonal rains for the first time, he added.

Raj Kumar demanded that the government should immediately order assessment of the loss to paddy crop. Special staff should be deployed to procure the damaged crop and special dumps made for this procured damaged crop.