Heavy rains that lashed parts of Shivamogga, Chikkamagaluru and Hassan in the last two days have left residents and farmers badly hit.
The growers of coffee, areca and small farmers who were preparing for the harvest are worried about losing the crop due to the incessant rains. As the low-lying areas are flooded, many residents are busy clearing the water that gushed into their houses.
A few portions of coffee estates owned by three planters at Mallodi in Kalasa taluk were damaged following a landslide caused due to heavy rains. The flow of rainwater increased and caused the landslide. Similar incidents were reported on a large scale during heavy rains in 2019 in Mudigere taluk.
The areca growers in Shivamogga and Chikkamagaluru have been facing difficulty to tackle the leaf spot disease, caused due to increase in moisture. The continuous rains have stopped them from spraying medicines.
The coffee planters of Chikkamagaluru and Hassan are worried about losing yield due to heavy rains. The changes in the rain pattern have already hit them hard. They have lost hopes of good pepper yield also.
Maize growers of Gowthampura in Sagar taluk were expecting good returns this year. But the heavy rains damaged the standing crop. The farmers, who invested thousands of rupees, are disappointed.
The Tunga has been in spate following heavy rains in the catchment area. Many low lying areas of Shivamogga were flooded on Wednesday. The residents of Hosamane Extension were seen clearing the water that had entered their dwellings.
