Malwa, April 5: Heavy rain and hailstorms lashed the Malwa region on Saturday, compounded by a weather forecast predicting further precipitation through April 7. The latest spell of inclement weather has intensified concerns among the agricultural community in Fazilka and Moga districts, where harvest-ready crops were already reeling from previous western disturbances.
Agricultural officials noted that the impact is particularly severe across 44 villages in Fazilka, where wheat, mustard, and green fodder have sustained significant damage. Current data suggests that crops across 16,085 hectares have suffered losses ranging between 20 and 80 percent.
“The exact loss would be assessed once weather conditions improve,” Fazilka Chief Agriculture Officer Harpreet Pal Kaur stated while discussing the preliminary damage reports.
Local administration officials confirmed that a special girdawari to assess the extent of the destruction is currently underway. Additional Deputy Commissioner Mandeep Kaur affirmed that the survey follows specific instructions issued by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann during his recent visit to the district.
However, farmer unions maintained that the pace of government intervention needs to accelerate. Following a tour of affected areas in Kamalwala and Katehra, Bhartiya Kisan Union (Kadian) president Nishan Singh declared that the standing wheat crop is severely compromised.
“The standing wheat crop has been damaged,” Singh asserted while demanding a relief package of Rs 50,000 per acre for the affected farmers.
The crisis has also gained political momentum. Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal declared that the farming community is in deep distress.
“Farmers are in distress and have not received compensation for damage caused to their paddy crop in the devastating floods last year,” Badal affirmed during a rally. He added that widespread damage is now evident across Bathinda, Mansa, and Muktsar Sahib, necessitating immediate financial aid.
