Though the district administration has already announced that the district suffered nearly 50% crop loss owing to drought, more evidence has emerged confirming this. This year, around 25,000 toor farmers could not register at toor procurement centres, for their crop did not yield anything because of the drought.
According to officials, on the last date (Saturday) for registration, as many as 58,906 farmers were registered for selling their produce. Last year, over 83,000 farmers registered. According to officials, even the queues at the registration counters were short when compared to last year.
With the registration now over, officials are waiting for the government order to start procuring toor. They are hoping to do so within a week. The Union government has fixed the price at ₹5,675 a quintal and the State government is adding ₹425 incentive to increase the MSP on toor.
Cattle trouble
The situation is no better for the farmers who are selling off their cattle.
The annual cattle fair being organised on account of Siddeshwara Jatra has witnessed limited selling this year because of drought. Though hundreds of farmers had come to sell to their cattle, a majority either took back their cattle on not getting a good price or sold them at low rates.
“The farmers who had adequate storage of fodder took back their animals, but those who didn’t have fodder and money sold their cattle for meagre amounts,” said Siddalinga Salotagi, a farmer who sold a pair of bulls for ₹75,000. The same pair would have gone for at least ₹1.25 lakh if there had been no drought in the district.
