Days of continuous rainfall in Alwar district have turned farmland into shallow pools, leaving onion and bajra (pearl millet) growers deeply worried about their standing and freshly sown crops. Waterlogged fields have been reported both in the city area and in the district's rural pockets, and farmers fear their months of hard work could literally wash away.
Onion sowing has already been completed in several parts of the district, while farmers in some areas are still preparing their fields for sowing. In plots where onion saplings have already taken root, farmers fear that standing water for days on end could damage the young plants.
Rot risk grows for onion crop as water lingers
Agriculture experts say that when water stays stagnant in fields for a long stretch, the risk of rot disease in onion crops rises sharply. Excess moisture starves plant roots of the air they need, stunting growth and gradually weakening the crop. Farmers worry that if this spell of rain continues in the coming days, it could not only damage the onion crop but also bring down overall yield significantly.
Seed germination under threat in freshly sown fields
Farmers currently sowing onion seeds face an entirely different kind of trouble. Heavy rain either washes away the top layer of soil covering the seeds or compacts it too hard, and either outcome can stop seeds from germinating properly. If germination is affected, farmers may be forced to re-sow the same field altogether, an outcome that would raise their costs while also weakening the chances of getting their harvest on time. Farmers point out that rain only helps a crop when it doesn't pool up in the field but drains away easily. Once water starts collecting and staying put during continuous heavy rain, that is when the real threat to the onion crop begins.
Harvested bajra crop also caught in the rain's path
Alwar district is also in the middle of its bajra harvesting season right now, and it is in full swing. Many farmers have already cut their crop and left it lying in the fields to dry, while in some areas the crop is still standing uncut. The rain has piled worry onto both groups of farmers at once. Rainwater falling on the harvested bajra lying in the fields is adding moisture to the grain, raising the risk that it will spoil. If that moisture persists for long, the overall quality of the harvest could suffer directly. Meanwhile, if the rain keeps up for another day or two, even the bajra crop that is still standing in the fields could be ruined.
With both onion and bajra crops facing risk from the same spell of rain, farmers across the district have lost sleep over it. All eyes are now on the sky, as farmers wait for the rain to stop and for the water sitting in their fields to finally drain away.
