Wheat yield dips, farmers blame untimely rain
Strap: Per acre yield has gone down to 15-17 quintal from 19-20 last year
Manmeet Singh Gill
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, May 13
Farmers from various parts of the district have reported a fall of up to four quintals in per acre wheat yield due to the unfavourable weather conditions that prevailed during the cultivation period. According to them, the wheat yield this season has gone down to 15 to 17 quintals as compared to the 19 to 20 quintals for the average years.
Kuljeet Singh, a farmer from Malawali village, said: “The average yield is around 15.5 quintals. At best, farmers got a yield of 17 quintals. The untimely rain that had delayed the sowing of wheat is one of the factors behind fall in yield.”
Another farmer Rawel Singh from Gagobooha village, said: “The rains this season were above normal. When the crop was ready for harvesting, hailstones in various places damaged the crop and washed away grains from the plants.” He said some farmers had to sow wheat twice as the seeds sown the first time failed to germinate due to the high moisture due to rain.
According to data on the arrival of wheat crop at grain markets in the district, around 83 per cent of crop in comparison to the arrival last year has arrived so far. In comparison to a total arrival of 6.82 lakh metric tonnes, the grain markets have recorded an arrival of 5.70 lakh metric tonnes this year. The harvesting in rural areas has been already over. Officials of the Mandi Board said they estimate that upto 40,000 tonnes of wheat might arrive in case farmers have stored it at their homes.
Chief Agriculture Officer Dr Gurdial Singh Bal admitted that lower yield has been reported from trial fields of the department. “We have recorded a loss of one quintal per acre. The loss is primarily due to unfavourable weather conditions.” Bal said wheat sowing was delayed which has resulted in loss.
