Heatwave in Punjab, Haryana drops country’s wheat production by 2.75 million tonnes: Agriculture Minister Tomar

Tribune News Service

Karam Prakash

New Delhi, December 21

Extreme weather conditions, especially in wheat growing states: Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh, have negatively impacted the production of wheat crops in the country as the production has declined by 2.75 million tonnes this year.

As per the fourth estimate for the agricultural year 2021-22, the production of wheat is estimated at 106.84 million tones, indicating a dip of 2.75 million tonnes (2.5 per cent) as compared to 109.59 million tonnes estimated during 2020-21.

Experts are linking early heatwave in the month of March in Punjab, Haryana and UP with the dip this year.

This was disclosed by the Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Tomar in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday. He issued a written statement in a response to a question by Punjab Congress MP Ravneet Singh Bittu.

The latest report of Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) had already shed light on the crop damage caused due to the scorching heatwave in the months of March and April 2022.

“Increase in extreme weathers — that of minimum and maximum temperatures — has been the likely reason. The extreme heat in March and April this year had resulted in dry winds, high evapotranspiration and moisture stress. Several districts of Punjab were affected with that event which resulted in yellowing and shriveling of wheat grain and forced maturity, thereby impacting the yields up to 25 per cent reduction,” read the report.

Agriculture expert Devinder Sharma said, “We are in the middle of a climate emergency. It should be addressed at the earliest. There should be more discussion on global climate change, and not only when it impacts wheat production."

Governmentt did what it could

Meanwhile, the agriculture minister said that ICAR had developed various climate resilient varieties of seeds in different crops, including wheat, that were tolerant to climate stress and also keeping strict vigil on disease situation in the country.

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