Farmers in western and northern Odisha districts bore the brunt of unseasonal rain triggered by cyclone Phethai. Agricultural fields were filled with water leaving little scope for a normal harvest.
Except Jajpur, Puri, Balasore, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara and Bhadrak, all other districts in the State received rainfall in the last 24 hours, ending on Tuesday morning. “Highest average rainfall of 75.3 mm was received in Jharsuguda district while neighbouring Sambalpur recorded average 73.5 mm rain. Estimated 71.5 mm rainfall was recorded in Bargarh, while Deogarh (68.3 mm) and Subarnapur (67.7 mm) also received significant precipitation,” said Special Relief Commissioner Bishnupada Sethi. Gajapati, Boudh, Rayagada and Angul received average rainfall of above 50 mm.
“Farmers were warned about possible rain. We don’t expect paddy which was stored in market yards and threshing floor after harvest to be badly damaged in the rain. We are waiting for reports from collectors about crop damage,” he said. According to the SRC, the government would announce compensation after analysing the crop damage.
