Rains hit farming in Gujarat

Incessant rains lashing almost all parts of Gujarat for the past 48 hours is likely to hit crops in South Gujarat.

Fortunately, sowing for the kharif crop has not begun in Gujarat and the rabi season had already ended, so the damage may be limited.

The rains would also impact the mango crop from orchards in Saurashtra and South Gujarat as the fruit was ready to be plucked.

The state agriculture department has called for inputs from all districts, seeking information on standing crops as these would be damaged the most.

The damage would mount as the cyclonic depression would lead to widespread and heavy rainfall in the coastal areas in the day or two.

"Sowing for the kharif crop is yet to take place and the rabi season (mainly wheat and gram) have already been harvested. Crops, including paddy n South Gujarat, still standing in fields along with other off-season crops could be affected in case of heavy rainfall," said a spokesperson of the agriculture department.

State agriculture minister Bhupendra Chudasama could not be reached.

The cyclone that struck the Gujarat coast four years ago had damaged the mango crop just when it was due to be plucked. Metereological department officials here said there were indications the cyclone may not hit the coast with full force.

Even then, heavy rains would damage standing crops and the mango orchards. Information on the location or time at which the cyclone would hit the Saurashtra coast was yet to be released by the weather department. The storm was approximately 260km south of Veraval on Monday noon.

Sources at the Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC), Naroda, which deals exclusively in fruits, said heavy rains in Saurashtra and south Gujarat would hit the mango crop. The damage would be reflected in weekly figures to be released after Saturday.

"There is likely to be a drop in the 'kesar' and alphonso varieties of mangoes arriving from Saurashtra and south Gujarat," an official of Naroda APMC said.

Between May 3 and 8, the Naroda APMC received 28,131 quintals of raw mangoes, 9,338 quintals of alphonso mangoes and 25,247 quintals of kesar mangoes.

The arrivals of mangoes of these varieties had been steadily rising over the past month as the crop season approached its peak.

The rains would hit the standing crop and fruits, so arrival at APMC markets was likely to decline. APMC officials also predicted a fall in fruits from other parts of the state.

Between May 3 and 8, the Naroda APMC received 524 quintals of apples, 2,907 quintals of chikoos, 770 quintals of apples, 279 quintals of oranges, 1,918 quintals of sweet lime, 3,238 quintals of grapes, 1,815 quintals of pomegranates, 464 quintals of papayas and 3,769 quintals of water melons.