Growth dwarfed, dejected Haryana farmers destroy standing paddy crop

Shiv Kumar Sharma

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Yamunanagar, September 10

Paddy cultivation has turned bitter for thousands of farmers in Yamunanagar district due to dwarf disease.

Dejected farmers have started destroying their three-month-old disease-hit paddy crop. Farmer Lakhwinder Singh Cheema of Sarawan village in the district has destroyed his standing crop on one hectare with a tractor.

Cheema said that he had to destroy his crop due to stunted growth and non-emergence of panicle. “I have sown paddy on eight hectares this year. But the crop on two hectares was hit 100 per cent by dwarf disease. I destroyed one hectare crop on Thursday,” said Lakhwinder Cheema.

Another farmer, Baljore Singh of Gundiani village, said that he destroyed his disease-affected paddy crop on three acres on Wednesday.

Farmers have sown paddy on 83,000 hectares in Yamunanagar district in the current paddy crop season. Of that, crop sown on 12,000 hectares has been affected by dwarf disease.

As per claims made by farmers before the authorities of Haryana Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Department, most incidents of stunted growth have been reported in Sawa-127, Sawa-7301, Shift Gold, Arize-6444, PR-114, Pusa-1509 and some other varieties. “Farmers had suffered huge loss in the wheat crop due to low yield in the past rabi season. Now, they will have to suffer loss due to dwarf disease. So, the government should immediately get a special girdawari conducted and give compensation to farmers,” said Sanju Gundiana, district president of Bhartiya Kisan Union.

Dr Pardeep Meel, Deputy Director (additional charge) of Agriculture Department, Yamunanagar, said, “Dwarf disease has affected 12,000 hectares of paddy crop in Yamunanagar district. I have sent a report to the higher authorities of the department.”