Daily Times

The Punjab Agriculture Department (PAD) has feared that province might not achieve the annual targets of one of the major crop-wheat, owing to the above than average rains in the season.

This also has been feared that the situation can be worrisome for the growers of other bumper crops; sugar cane and cotton, due to delay in their sowing.

A senior official of PAD informed Daily Times that all departments have been intimated that Rabi crops can be affected due to above than the normal rains in the seasons. He said that the major threat to due to recent rain will mostly affect the wheat crop as farmers were planning to harvest it next month. “In many wheat crops, the rain water is still stranded and that may give birth to pests,” he said and continued that at the time when wheat was about to ready to harvest and no farmer will take risk to spray pesticides to avoid harms.

Officer further said that due to torrential rain, soil crops have been wet and that can cause delay in sowing of Kharif crops. “Sugarcane farmers in many areas have yet to sow their crop due to pervasive soil. If the temperature will be prolonged for up to the next two weeks then it can effect adversely on this crop,” he added.

Moreover, he said that the present weather condition also had made cotton growers worrisome as many fields had inundated where it was impossible to sow cotton crop. “If fields remain inundated then it would be unfortunate for the cotton production due to delay in sowing,” he said and continued that the cotton production already had declined a lot over the years while this weather condition might help in its more decline.

Besides the major crops, the rains also have left worst impacts on the vegetables and fruits’ growth.

Talking to Daily Times, the Director General Agriculture (Extension) Dr Anjum Ali Buttar told that following the above than the average rain the department had issued advisory to the farmers while all the staff in province had advised to ensure the removal of water from the impervious soil from wheat fields. He said that department has directed its field staff to reach every problematic site to save every grain produced in the season. “Support of Pest Warning staff also have been requested to build an effective campaign,” he added.

Published in Daily Times, March 15^th 2019.