: With their crops withering for want of water, farmers in the delta region have literally been clutching at the straws. The scarce flow from Cauvery and a disappointing northeast monsoon have only added to their agony and have put paid to their hopes of raising at least the samba crop. With the parched fields fast turning into a grazing yard for the cattle, their cup of woes seems full.
Over the past two days, the farmers presented a moving account of their plight to the visiting Monitoring Officers – Food Secretary Pradeep Yadav in Thanjavur district and Social Reforms and Noon Meal Scheme Secretary K. Manivasan in Tiruvarur district.
In particular, the officials were apprised of the difficulties faced by those who went in for direct sowing. Previously, the direct sowing method was restricted to certain pockets in the delta region.
The samba and thalady paddy crops raised on close to nine lakh acres in the delta districts of Thanjavur, Tiruvarur and Nagapattinam are in various stages of stunted growth, and therefore, are in dire need of water. While 2.60 lakh acres are under samba and thalady in Thanjavur district, a total of 3.04 lakh acres are covered by the crop in Tiruvarur district; the Nagapattinam district accounts for 3.36 lakh acres. Farmers complained that nurseries raised on more than 500 acres in the Soorakkottai area had withered for want of water.
In the Pattukkottai, Thuvarankurichi, Madigai and Kannanthankudi areas of Thanjavur district, farmers rued that the 75-day-old paddy crops raised under the direct sowing method were also withering due to water scarcity. They pointed out that many had spent more than Rs. 12,000 per acre, a substantial part of which was borrowed.
Using motor pump sets, some enthusiastic farmers desperate to save their crops pumped out water from big pits in the channels where water logging was spotted. Despite spending Rs. 150 per hour as rent, their efforts came to nought.
In Tiruvarur district too, farmers in Nannilam, Moongilkudi, Sorakudi, Koradachery, Perumpugalur, Manakkal, Kudavasal, Ogai and Saaranatham where many fields were brought under direct sowing, complained of withered crops.
“In many instances, we had to steel ourselves and graze our cattle on the directly sown paddy fields to meet the feeding demands of our animals. We now know for certain that we cannot save even half the area under samba in the delta region, even if rains induced by the northeast monsoon were to come any day now. The season, for all practical purposes, has passed and we have lost the crop,”' says Swamimalai S. Vimalnathan, secretary, Thanjavur District Cauvery Farmers Protection Association, reflecting the mood of the delta farmers.
