Coronavirus may have its bearing on paddy cutting in the yasangi. Farmers who transplanted paddy earlier in the season are gripped by fear with the imposition of lockdown restricting the movement of workers and vehicles, which would also apply to harvesters. To cut the crop, a large number of harvesting machines and their drivers and cleaners arrive from different States every season.
Though some local rich farmers purchased harvesting machines, they would not be sufficient to cut the crop transplanted on over 2.40 lakh acres in the district. About 1,500 harvesters run on chains come from Karnataka during kharif and almost half the figure in yasangi. Harvesters run on tyres are available locally and some in Karimnagar.
However, chain-type harvesters are in high demand as there is no wastage of crop with them. Moreover, they are suitable to ayacut lands as they are marshy even after crop comes to harvest. “Only chain vehicles are preferable in Nizamsagar ayacut and along the Godavari and if the government doesn’t allow them to come from Karnataka, farmers will become jittery,” said Parvataneni Charan Gopal, who provide vehicles on contract basis.
Crop is ready for cutting in about a week at Varni, Rudrur, Mosra, Yedapally, Bodhan and Nandipet mandals. All the mandals are under NSP or SRSP ayacut. If the machines are in shortage, demand would be high and machine owners may insist on higher prices for cutting.
“In the last kharif per-acre price for cutting had gone up to ₹2,250 and this season if harvesters are not available, the figure may go up to ₹3,000. The government needs to be alert to the likely situation and take the initiative to ensure availability of adequate number of machines,” said Charan, adding that authorities should focus on harvesters first instead of opening purchase centres as that is a next-stage arrangement.
Sivakumar, a farmer in Mupkal mandal, said an elected representative of a local body who owns two harvesters kept two Punjabi drivers, providing them all facilities with a good salary, in view of the high demand for them. Anticipating the critical situation arising out of COVID-19, he persuaded them to be available for harvesting, he said.
