Punjab: Rain may damage kharif crops, say experts

Incessant rain at many places in Punjab may cause damage to Kharif crops, especially paddy and cotton, farm experts said on Saturday.

Besides delaying harvesting of crops, the untimely rain will not only affect the yield but also quality of crop, they said.

Rain lashed parts of Punjab and Haryana, leading to a dip in the mercury by a few notches.

Rain was witnessed in Punjab's Ludhiana, Mohali, Patiala, Mansa, Fatehgarh Sahib, Sangrur, Amritsar and Bathinda and Haryana's Kaithal, Kurukshetra, Karnal, Ambala and Sonipat, according to the Metrological Department.

According to farm experts, the untimely rain, if it continues for a few more days, will hit both paddy and cotton crops.

"Rain at this stage if it continues for two-three days will affect the kharif crops. It will affect yield and quality of paddy crop which is at the harvesting stage," said Punjab Agriculture Department Director Gurwinder Singh.

Farm experts fear that rain accompanied by wind can lead to flattening of paddy crop, thus, making it difficult to harvest.

"Rain will have a negative impact on the paddy crop at this stage," Punjab Agricultural University Vice Chancellor Dr S S Gosal said.

It will lead to excess moisture level in the crop, which may lead to an adverse impact on its quality, said the experts. There are also chances of discolouration of the grain, they added.

The agriculture experts said showers will also affect the cotton crop.

Rain and wind could lead to dropping of seed cotton on the ground from the plant, they said.

Punjab brought 30.84 lakh hectares of area under paddy this season. Paddy procurement will start from October 1.