The heavy rains that lashed Tiruchi and its surrounding areas on Monday night has come as a good augury for farmers looking to raise samba paddy in the canal irrigated areas of the district.
Besides Tiruchi city, some of the canal irrigated areas in the district such as Lalgudi and Pullambadi also received good showers.
Farmers in canal-irrigated areas of the district are gearing for taking up samba paddy cultivation even as water released from the Mettur reservoir has already reached Grand Anicut from where it has been released for irrigation in the core delta areas.
With most of the farmers unable to take up kuruvai paddy cultivation, farmers in Tiruchi district too are eager to make the most of the samba season and have been clamouring for the opening of the water in irrigation canals in Tiruchi and Karur districts from the Cauvery at Mayanur. Some of the farmers’ organisations have already sent representations to the State government.
Agriculture department officials expect samba paddy cultivation to slightly exceed the normal area.
“We expect samba paddy to be cultivated on about 86,600 acres, which is marginally higher than the normal area, in the canal irrigated delta areas of the district this year,” R.Santhanakrishnan, Joint Director of Agriculture, Tiruchi, told The Hindu on Tuesday.
Monday’s rain will come in handy for farmers to prepare their fields for samba cultivation, he said.
Farmers in the canal irrigated areas have started preliminary works such as ploughing the field. Farming operations are expected to begin soon once the water is released in the irrigation canals.
However, farmers in the non-delta areas of the district are expected to take up cultivation later, depending on the monsoon.
Adequate quantity of seeds and fertilizers are available to meet farmers requirements for the season in the district, Mr. Santhanakrishnan said.
About 391 tonnes of seeds, including those of medium term and popular varieties such as TKM 13, COR 50, ADT 49, NLR 34449 and Tiruchi 3, were available in agriculture extension centres in the eight delta blocks of Andhanallur, Manikandam, Tiruverumbur, Pullambadi, Lalgudi, Manachanallur, Musiri and Thottiyam in the district. About 42,576 fertilizers, including DAP, Urea and complex fertilizer, were available in the delta blocks. Both the seed and fertilizers stocks are more than the anticipated requirement.
