TDP set up teams to observe deficit rainfall in State

Hyderabad, Aug 8 :-

  The Opposition and Telugu Desam Legislature Party Leader, Mr N Chandrababu Naidu, on Saturday stated that the farmers in Andhra Pradesh are going to witness an unprecedented situation with at least 1,000 mandals out of 1,128 reporting deficit rainfall.

Talking to media persons on Saturday, he said while vast stretches are yet to see sowings, crops on lakhs of acres face the threat of withering or wilting due to severe deficits in rainfall.

With the South-West monsoon playing truant, he said the State shows a deficit of 52 per cent rainfall. Against the normal figure of 322.20 mm, the State received only 153.80 mm, he pointed out.

To observe the deficit rainfall condition in all districts, the former Chief Minister said that all TDP MLAs will visit all taluks and mandals on Saturday and Sunday. After collecting the data on prevailing drought-like situation in the State, the MLAs would submit their report to the party.

The TDP chief would raise this issue with the State and Centre seeking financial assistance to drought-hit farmers.

Seeing the severity of the issue, Naidu said that the State Government may declare three-fourths of the mandals drought-hit and seek Central assistance.

It was reported that the hopes of the farmers and officials were crashed in the first week of August with seven districts reporting deficits of 60 per cent to 99 per cent. The remaining districts, barring the three North coastal districts, registered deficits between 20 per cent and 59 per cent.

This has impacted almost all crops. Paddy and groundnut were sown in just 26-56 per cent of the normal area. Sugarcane, maize, onion and tur dal were sown in 51-75 per cent, while cotton is slightly better off with 76-100 per cent sown area.

The three key paddy growing districts of East Godavari, West Godavari and Krishna districts reporting deficits of 41 per cent, 47 per cent and 65 per cent shows the enormity of the problem.

“The growth could be stunted if there are no rains in the next two-three days. Yields too will drop significantly,” a senior official of the Agriculture Department said.