SARBHANG

Written by M.B. Subba, Gelephu    

Mar 22, 2009: The prolonged dry spell in the past six months is likely to affect crop production in the southern foothills of the country.  Farmers are desperately praying to the rain deities.

It is obvious that the farmers may not be able to harvest maize this year. Maize is sown at the beginning of spring in the southern foothills. March is the month when farmers start weeding the maize crops. But in Tsirang and Sarpang no one has started sowing the seeds for lack of rain.

Those who had sown maize early are complaining that the maize crops have started drying under the scorching heat and lack of moisture.  “My maize crop has started dying in the field,” said Khandu, a farmer from Bhur, Sarpang.

“This time I could not sow the maize seed because the soil is dry and it has hardened under the sun making the fields difficult for preparation,”  said Birkhay Rai of Lodrai, pointing at his barren land. Farmers sow maize and buck wheat in January and February in the southern belt which contributes substantially to the country’s food production.

It is uncertain how much loss  will be caused by the drought-like situation as yet but  agriculture officials said  that if the weather continues to remain  the same the loss could be substantial. 

If maize and other food grain production is drastically reduced, the water crisis could affect farmers’ kitchens. If it continues and the food grain production is affected, then the country would have to resort to import of food grains.

Farmers fear that they might have to import food grains from outside this year as production of maize, second major crop of the country, has been delayed due to lack of rainfall. But purchasing power of the farmers depend on the production of other cash crops which too is severely affected by the lack of rainfall.

Observers say that farmers are facing the affect of climate change due to global warming which they are not even 

aware.

It is the poor and agricultural countries which are most hit by the effect of climate change but they contribute least to global warming according to researchers.