Untimely rain damages paddy crop on 5,000 hectares in Andhra Pradesh

At a time when a bumper harvest was expected in the Rabi season, untimely rain in different districts of Andhra Pradesh left paddy crop in over 5,000 hectares damaged, causing distress to farmers.

Krishna and East Godavari districts suffered the major damage as partly harvested and also ready to harvest paddy was hit by the sudden rain on Saturday, official sources said.

State Agriculture Minister K Kanna Babu reviewed the situation with his department officials on Sunday and also briefed Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on the preliminary estimates of the damages.

"I will discuss the issue at length with the Chief Minister and try to bail out the distressed farmers," Kanna Babu said in a statement.

Besides paddy, maize in over 520 hectares, sesame, tobacco and groundnut crops were also affected in districts like Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, East Godavari, West Godavari, Krishna and Anantapuramu.

In all, different crops in over 5,500 hectares were said to be affected, as per preliminary estimates.

The agriculture department officials have been asked to carry out detailed enumeration of the damages.

(image credit: Representational image/PTI)