Jharkhand minister flags crop loss due to excess rain, urea crisis

Jharkhand Agriculture Minister Shilpi Neha Tirkey on Tuesday said that there has been 10 per cent loss in paddy due to excessive rainfall during the monsoon this year.

Addressing the Jharkhand Assembly during a special discussion on excessive rainfall affecting farmers in the state, Shilpi Neha Tirkey said that Chief Minister Hemant Soren had held a meeting with senior officials of the agriculture and other related departments in June.

"The agriculture department had sought reports from all 24 districts. According to the report, there has been a 10 per cent loss in paddy but there has been more loss in coarse grains," said Tirkey.

The loss will be compensated from the disaster fund, she said, adding that the crop insurance scheme is being run by the state government.

''Compensation provision is being made for farmers and registration is going on under Birsa Fasal Yojana,'' she said.

"This year, the consumption of urea is more. But instead of 1.60 lakh tonnes of urea sanctioned from the Central Government, only 1.13 lakh tonnes has been received. We are still to receive nearly 50,000 tonnes from the Centre. The department has also written to the Centre regarding this. There is a shortage of urea all over the country. The foreign policy of the Central Government is responsible for this," Tirkey alleged.

She added that after receiving complaints regarding hoarding of urea, about 500 raids have been conducted, and eight licenses have been suspended and 21 cancelled.

''FIRs have also been registered against two. The state government stands firmly with the farmers," Tirkey added.

The minister said Jharkhand received 760 mm of rainfall - three times more than last year.

"According to the Meteorological Department, rainfall in the state was 70 per cent above normal, with some districts recording even more alarming figures. Seraikela saw a 240 per cent increase, Lohardaga 300 per cent, Ranchi 196 per cent, Chatra 177 per cent, and Khunti 153 per cent," said Tirkey.

Later, Chief Minister Hemant Soren, speaking to the media, expressed serious concerns over the adverse impact of the excessive rain this year, and said the government is doing its best to solve problems being faced by people.

He said that discussions in this regard were held in the House also.

"Rainfall across the state has been far above normal. This issue was flagged right at the beginning of the session, and we had demanded that it be taken up for thorough discussion," Soren said.

The CM said that the government is monitoring the situation closely and will take appropriate measures to support affected areas.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)