Telangana farmers alter crop sowing patterns due to deficit Rains
Even though Telangana's agricultural activities have increased for the current Kharif 2024 crop season, farmers are exercising caution because 11 districts have seen below-average rainfall this month. The districts of telangana that have seen deficit rainfall are Adilabad, Komuram-Bheem Asifabad, nizamabad, Nirmal, Kamareddy, Peddapalli, Jagtial, Rajanna-Sircilla, Mulugu, Bhupalapally, and bhadradri Kothagudem. mancherial has so far recorded a "large deficit" in rainfall this season.
As of Wednesday, june 19, jogulamba gadwal district has gotten the most rainfall (significant surplus) of the season with 153.5 mm of rain, a significant departure from the 25.8 mm of rain recorded on the same date the previous year. Even yet, it is still far more than the typical rainfall for this time of year, which has been 44.6 mm.
On average, nevertheless, the state's june rainfall this year has been superior to that of the previous june southwest monsoons. There has been 85.3 mm of rainfall between june 1 and june 19, compared to 15.7 mm at the same time last year. As of now, 78.5 mm of rain is predicted to fall on average. Data from the telangana Agriculture Department shows that as of Wednesday, there has been an 8.7% divergence in rainfall from average.
Nonetheless, the state's water supply isn't as abundant as it once was. As of Wednesday, Telangana's biggest reservoirs held 223.53 tmcft, compared to 370.02 tmcft on the same day the previous year.
Along with raising paddy under guaranteed irrigation sources, farmers in telangana have also begun to grow rainfed crops including jowar, bajra, maize, ragi, pulses, groundnut, soybean, cotton, etc.
Along with raising paddy under guaranteed irrigation sources, farmers in telangana have also begun to grow rainfed crops including jowar, bajra, maize, ragi, pulses, groundnut, soybean, cotton, etc.
While there hasn't been much sowing of paddy, which is still in the nursery stage, Telangana's sowing patterns indicate that farmers are opting to cultivate cotton this year just to be safe, given that cotton is a crop more susceptible to drought. Given the strong international demand for cotton, the telangana government has also been urging farmers to plant cotton this season.
While 50,48,904 acres are typically used for cotton cultivation during the Kharif season, just 1,14,317 acres were used for this purpose last year. It has climbed to 15,60,677 acres this year, though, indicating that farmers are exercising caution in selecting the appropriate crop for the current climate and the availability of both assured and non-assured water during this growing season.
It is noteworthy that a large number of farmers in the nizamabad district are growing maize this year. The district typically cultivates 38,056 acres of maize, but as of this writing, 2,258 acres had been planted. It has increased to 15,939 acres this season, though, suggesting that the farmers in this region are also exercising caution when it comes to the crop.
Compared to the typical cultivation area of 1,31,02,372 acres throughout the state for the Kharif crop season, 1,53,889 acres were cultivated last year. As of Wednesday, it grew to 20,22,603 acres this year, according to the Agriculture Department's weekly report.
Compared to the typical cultivation area of 1,31,02,372 acres throughout the state for the Kharif crop season, 1,53,889 acres were cultivated last year. As of Wednesday, it grew to 20,22,603 acres this year, according to the Agriculture Department's weekly report.