Weather Woes Hit Over 1L UP Farmers as Unseasonal Rainfall Damages More Than 35,480 Hectares of Crop

Unseasonal rainfall, followed by hail and strong winds that hit Uttar Pradesh last month, may have brought a little relief from the scorching heat but it has wreaked havoc on farmers in state. The inclement weather has forced more than 1.70 lakh farmers to live from hand to mouth and flattened crop area over 35,480 hectares in 11 districts, according to the government survey.

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has assured immediate relief to the affected farmers but the compensation will be given only to those farmers who qualify the set criterion.

According to UP relief commissioner Prabhu Narayan Singh, only farmers whose loss in terms of affected crop area is 33 per cent or above are qualified for compensation under the central government’s guidelines and other farmers are compensated by the crop insurance companies, only if they are covered under the crop insurance scheme.

“Taking the 33 per cent and above loss criteria into account, we have identified a total of 35,480.52 hectares of crop area that has been damaged due to rains and hailstorms so far since March 15,” said Singh. “This area includes all crops. We do not identify crop-wise affected areas,” Singh added.

As per the government’s survey that was carried out in the entire state to assess the losses incurred due to unseasonal rainfall, which first hit UP on March 15 and continued till March-end, the affected area incorporates all crops, including mustard. Wheat is said to be the main crop that has been affected because it is the primary Rabi crop grown on an area of around 1 lakh hectare in UP.

The UP relief commissioner said a compensation of Rs 5,859.29 lakh had already been given to 1,07,523 affected farmers. Also the work to identify the farmers, who suffered losses of less than 33 per cent, is in progress and the final figures are expected only after harvesting.

“The assessment of damaged crop area below 33 per cent can be made only after the crops are harvested and this will take some time. After that, only farmers covered under crop insurance will be compensated as per the rules,” additional chief secretary, agriculture, Devesh Chaturvedi said.

However, Chaturvedi added that the unseasonal rainfall had not only affected the crop but also benefited it in a few ways.

“The unseasonal rain has put brakes on the early arrival of summer which was expected to poorly affect the quality of wheat in terms of shine, and thickness. But rains and hailstorms too may have affected wheat quality in some districts,” he said.

Chaturvedi said the government would soon send a proposal to the Centre, seeking permission for procurement of low-quality wheat too from affected farmers at the same MSP (minimum support price).

“We are collecting reports from districts where the quality of wheat has suffered. Once we receive reports, we will send a proposal to the Centre, seeking relaxation in conditions related to wheat purchase so that even low-quality wheat can be procured from farmers at the MSP in the districts concerned,” Chaturvedi said.

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