Downpour leaves farmers worried

Neeraj Bagga

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, September 23

Downpour with high-velocity winds on Sunday have left farmers worried. They have fear that rain may damage paddy and basmati crops as the harvesting season is about to begin.

The region witnessed strong winds and rain throughout the day on Sunday

The district is known for producing high-quality basmati, which is grown on 88,500 hectares. Other varieties of paddy, except for basmati, are grown on 1 lakh hectares. The border district grows basmati as it is exported to developed countries.

Kuljit Singh, a farmer of Mahla village, said, “The 1509 variety of basmati is almost ready for harvesting. There is fear that the rain may flatten the crop.”

Farmers also fear that moisture content will increase, which may play a spoilsport during the procurement.