Full transcript:
Sir, we were told that Indian agriculture depended on vagaries of monsoon. With less than 50% of the arable land still remaining non-irrigated, late monsoon or scanty rainfall create drought conditions adversely affecting agriculture.
Similarly, heavy rainfall, particularly if it is untimely, causes equally adverse effect on agriculture. In the winter light rain fall is necessary before flowering of wheat and also potatoes, but if it rains heavily it becomes a curse.
This shower if it had happened earlier would have been highly welcomed by the farmers. Today it has become a curse for them. We do not have any firm figures and these are still being estimated, but the guess is it is going to be severe unless very strong sun comes out and brings relief. What is tragic is that good harvest is there, but we have lost out on it, like a boat having reached the shore but sinks.
Sir, states affected as per the information in the newspaper are northern parts of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Maharashtra and Gujarat.
Special assistance should be given to all farmers and it should be taken as a matter of force in future for all similar activities. The crops affected by the temperature collapse are; wheat, mustard, gram, potato, mango flowers, early mango in the western region, grape, cashew nut and orange.
So, this phenomenon reiterates the early need of Universal Crop Insurance. Without any cumbersome procedure those farmers whose names are in the record of the rights should be given compensation and the small insurance fee may be realised from them along with taxes so that no bureaucracy creates more hindrances.
Sir, with this, I would like that the Government takes steps for all the affected states and arrange for economic rehabilitation of those farmers who have lost their crop.
