Nizamabad: Paddy restrictions plunge farmers in distress

Nizamabad: The farmers in northern Telangana have one more reason to worry after the Central and State governments had imposed restrictions on paddy cultivation during the Rabi season.

The nature seems to haunt the farmers by obstructing the flowering stage of the mango orchards. In northern Telangana, mango orchards are the main source of income for the farmer after the paddy harvest. There is concern that mangoes, which have not fetched profits to growers for the past two years, will be left with bitter experiences this year as well. Farmers, who have been hit hard by the Covid-19, are feeling the pinch of unpredictable weather conditions this year. Jagtial, Karimnagar, Rajanna-Sircilla, Kamareddy, Nizamabad, Manchiryala, Peddapalli, Bhupalapalli, Janagam and Warangal districts in the paddy belt areas of northern Telangana and the mango crop yield, which is spread in about seven lakh acres, has become matter of concern this year.

Karimnagar was the epicenter of the Covid-19 catastrophic situation in March 2020, when the mango season began. Mango orchard farmers in north Telangana were in dilemma on how to sell their produce due to the pandemic It was difficult for farmers to harvest mangoes and reach the market to sell it. Lockdown in other states has had an impact on mango exports from here as imports have stagnated.

The unfavorable weather conditions have raised concerns at a time when it is hoped to get rid of the hardships faced for two years with the epidemic. With the southwest monsoon, this season has seen heavy rainfall over a long period of time. The mango flowering stage was affected as heavy rains were still falling due to incessant cyclones in Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal.

There is a strange atmosphere experienced on a fiery sunny day or a cold rainy day. Farmland, which has been without moisture since November, is currently wet and muddy. While the mango orchards reach their flowering and shoots stage in November and December each year, not a single mango tree is seen flowering this year. Yields are estimated based on the number of flowers and shoots in the mango orchard at this time each year. Traders make a purchase agreement in advance and give some cash in advance to the farmers.

This time the traders do not seem to be able to carry on their activities. The mango traders from Delhi used to reach Jagtial, Manchiryala, Kagaznagar, Nizamabad, Kamareddy, Janagam, Warangal and Peddapalli and make advance investments to the farmers on the condition that the mangoes produced in the orchards. The mango farmer is worried that there is no trace of Delhi traders in the North Telangana districts so far this year.

The mango orchard reaches the flowering stage in the months of November and December every year.