Farmers Face New Setback with Fresh Storms & Hail Damaging Crops

This week, there was a new episode of turbulent weather that caused intense rainfall and hail. Unfortunately, this brought further hardship to the agriculture industry. Farmers, meteorologists, and commodity traders are concerned that the crucial rabi crops may suffer significant harm and the harvesting process may be delayed.

On Friday afternoon, a forceful and unusual tornado swept through agricultural regions such as Fazilka in Punjab, causing harm to wheat and chilli crops, according to farmers. Additionally, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), a government-run organization, reported on Saturday that hailstorms struck certain areas in Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan.

Farmers and traders in Rajasthan, Punjab, and Haryana have reported that fields containing crops were completely flattened. This damage has impacted a variety of crops including wheat, which is a crucial winter staple, as well as mustard, oilseeds, fenugreek, and several horticulture crops. As a result, vegetable prices may increase in the upcoming weeks.

Ramandeep Singh Mann, an independent farm expert said “There are reports of damage to wheat in an estimated 400,000 hectares. We request the Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann ji to expedite crop-loss estimates.”

Following a study, the Rajasthan government instructed farmers to report crop losses to the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana helpline within 72 hours. According to Surendra Ahlawat, a former IMD forecaster, "the disturbances will start diminishing from Saturday."

An official from the agriculture department in Madhya Pradesh, who preferred to remain anonymous, has announced that compensation will be provided to farmers at a rate of Rs 32,000 per hectare if the crop loss in an area is 50% or greater. Currently, surveys are being conducted to determine the extent of the damage.

According to a Saturday update from the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the recent spell of weather, which began on the evening of March 23, brought heavy rainfall as well as significant amounts of hail to various regions, including Punjab, coastal Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, western Uttar Pradesh, eastern Rajasthan, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu.

A wheat grower named Deshraj from Karnal district expressed concern that the wheat crop on his 15-acre farm was already flattened due to rain earlier in the week, and now the waterlogging caused by the recent rainfall may damage the grain.

The state agriculture department has reported initial estimates indicating that the wheat crop has been affected on around 500,000 acres of land, as well as 165,000 acres of mustard crops.

On Saturday, Haryana's Chief Minister, Manohar Lal Khattar, conducted an aerial survey of the affected crops due to the untimely rain and hailstorms.

In Punjab, reports of crop damage came from multiple districts, including Sangrur, Barnala, Fatehgarh Sahib, Patiala, Jalandhar, Amritsar, Tarn Taran, and southwest Punjab. Earlier in the week, the state agriculture department had estimated damage to 400,000 hectares, and officials on Saturday indicated that the number could rise.

Despite warnings from most forecasters last month of potential crop damage due to heatwaves, a wet spell arrived, causing concern for crops. The Union government was prompted to sound an alert in response. In March 2022, a record hot spell had already shrunk wheat output by 2.5% to 106 million tonnes, which led to shortages.

Beginning around mid-March, inclement weather, triggered by back-to-back rain-bearing systems known as western disturbances and cyclonic patterns, has affected most states in the country.

"The primary concern with wheat is not so much a decline in output, but rather the damage to the quality of the grains. Farmers who have completed harvesting are bringing soggy and discoloured grains to the market, which is affecting their price," explained CP Gupta, the proprietor of Cheshta Enterprises, a commodity trading firm in Kota, Rajasthan.

According to an anonymous official, the Union government does not have any official estimates yet, as surveys are the responsibility of individual states.

This year, adequate harvests are crucial in light of wheat shortages and high food inflation. In February, consumer cereal prices increased by 16.73%, compared to a 16.12% increase in January. India has predicted a record-high wheat output of 112.3 million tonnes.

The trader, Gupta, reported that a farmer from Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan shared a video clip with him, showing vast stretches of farmland covered in hail overnight. These areas had mixed-standing crops like wheat and fenugreek, according to Gupta.

According to the official, the harvesting and procurement of wheat, which was scheduled to take place towards the end of March, is expected to be slightly delayed in Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh. The official also mentioned that dry weather is anticipated soon. Procurement refers to the process in which the central government purchases grains at minimum support prices, which are then distributed to nearly 800 million beneficiaries of the National Food Security Act 2013.