Wheat arrival in Ludhiana mandis gathers momentum
The wheat arrival is slowly picking up pace in the mandis in the district. Although the procurement process started on April 1, but the wheat first arrived on April 9 at Khanna Mandi. On the other hand, the Chandigarh Meteorological Centre’s warning for rainfall, thunderstorm and winds has put the farmers in a worry.
Till now, only 115 metric tonne of wheat has arrived in the mandis in Ludhiana so far. Only mandis of Khanna, Jagaron and Maachiwara have received the produce while the city mandis are still waiting.
Gurmitpal Singh, District Mandi Officer, said that the arrival is slowly picking up pace and it is expected that the arrival will further speed in the coming few days. The moisture level in the crop arrived in the mandis so far is near optimal level, he said.
Harinder Singh, a farmer from Samrala, said that the harvesting has been delayed after last month’s rain, wind and hail. “Farmers will be harvesting the wheat around April 18-20. The weather conditions and temperature at present are favourable for the wheat crop so we are just waiting for the crop to ripen fully and also acquire right amount of moisture level before we start harvesting it,” he said.
Dr MS Bhullar, Director of Extension Education, Punjab Agricultural University, said that the wheat harvesting was delayed as the weather was cooler in the last few days of the March due to which the grain had not ripened fully.
“There is no harm in delaying the harvesting at present as it will help in ripening the crop fully and will also help in increasing the yield,” he said.
Dr Bhullar cautioned that rain or wind at this juncture can prove fatal for the crop as it will flatten the crop and will also increase the moisture.
On the other hand, Chandigarh Meteorological Centre has predicted thunderstorm, lightning and gusty winds in the district on April 13 and 14 which has become a cause of concern for the farmers as wheat harvesting has just begun and majority of the farmers are yet to harvest their crop. An active Western Disturbance is likely to affect Northwest India from April 12 onwards, following which showers are expected over the weekend, according to the forecast. PAU has advised the farmers to do crop operation keep in view the weather forecast.
Source Link: https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/wheat-arrival-in-ludhiana-mandis-gathers-momentum-609990
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