The lines of worry have deepened on the face of farmers across Vidarbha, after the State government issued an advisory on Tuesday warning that the region may experience heavy rains later this week.
Untimely rains had resulted in crop damage on several hundreds hectares of land in the district leading to heavy financial losses to farmers.
According to the State government advisory, East Vidarbha is likely to experience very heavy rainfall this week between January 24 and 26 and farmers in the region should ensure safety of their crop.
The official release further stated that Gadchiroli, Chandrapur, Gondia, Bhandara, Nagpur, Amravati, Yavatmal and Wardha districts are expected to witness thunderstorms accompanied by very heavy rains this week.
“Farmers are advised to plan accordingly and ensure that their crop is safe. If the crop has been brought to the market committees, ensure its proper protection,” the statement added.
Hailstorm cannot be ruled out in these areas and the minimum temperature is expected to remain below average till January 29, it said.
Farmers across the region are busy harvesting tur crops while other crops too are approaching the harvest period. If it rains, they may lose standing crops again, which will further put them in deep financial stress.
According to farmers, they suffered huge losses in kharif season due to subdued prices and pink bollworm attack on cotton. Now, unseasonal rains and hailstorm may damage standing rabi crops such as wheat, chana, jowar and bajra in several parts of Vidarbha.