Sugarcane crop withers in Indora as irrigation facility not yet restored

The sugarcane crop of the farmers of the Mand-Ghandran area in the neighbouring Indora Assembly constituency of Kangra district have started withering in the absence of irrigation facility, which was disrupted over two months ago due to flash floods in the Beas. A number of electric poles had fallen and damaged in the rain disaster, snapping power supply to local irrigation schemes.

The farmers, who were expecting the restoration of power supply to the irrigation schemes, are under stress nowadays, as their standing sugarcane crop has started drying up in the absence of irrigation facility. Inquiries reveal that Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Ltd (HPSEBL) officials have erected electric poles in this Mand area but due to the non-installation of supply conductors and cables, power supply to borewells could not be restored.

The farmers have 15 wells bored in their fields on their own to irrigate their sugarcane crop but the water crisis has created drought-like conditions just before the harvesting season begins next month. Farmers Kulwinder, Jaswinder Singh and Ramesh Chand say that sugarcane is grown once in a year and harvested in 14 to15 months’ period. But, this year, the farmers will likely suffer crop loss due to the failure of the HPSEBL to restore power supply to their borewells.

They say that they had assisted the HPSEBL with their JCB machines and tractors in digging pits for erecting electric poles but it had not restored power supply to their irrigation borewells despite assurances from local officials. They have now appealed to Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu to intervene and direct the HPSEBL to restore power supply in the area.

Meanwhile, Sandeep Sadyal, Executive Engineer, Electrical division, Indora, says that the damaged electric poles have been replaced and once conductors and electrical wires are received, the remaining work to lay supply lines will be completed on a war footing.