Farmers Hit Hard by Adverse Weather: Hailstorm Destroys Crops in Rewari

Farmers in Haryana's Rewari district faced a disaster on Friday evening as the crop ready for harvest was destroyed due to unexpected heavy rains along with hailstorms. The abrupt change in weather has left even agricultural communities in shock, with economic ramifications for thousands of farmers who were getting ready to haul in their harvests in the next few days.

Sudden Destruction from Brief Storm 

According to local reports, the adverse weather struck around 7:30 PM on Friday evening. Though the hailstorm lasted only about 5 minutes, it was intense enough to flatten standing crops across the region, particularly in the Khol area where the hailstorm was most severe. 

The timing couldn't have been worse for local farmers. Mustard crops were fully matured and ready for harvest, while wheat crops were still in their developmental stage. The combination of hailstones and strong winds knocked down standing crops, leaving them damaged and exposed to further deterioration if additional rain follows.

Mahendra Bharti, a local agricultural reporter, noted that many farmers had just begun harvesting operations, with only about 5-10 percent of mustard crops already harvested in the district. The vast majority of crops were still standing in the fields, completely exposed to the elements. 

Farmers Left Helpless Against Nature's Fury 

"There's nothing we can do to protect our crops when nature strikes like this," said one farmer from the Khol area. "Our crops stand in open fields under the sky, and we are completely at the mercy of the weather." The situation is particularly frustrating for farmers as the weather had been unstable for the past four to five days, prompting some to begin early harvesting of their mustard crops. However, the majority couldn't complete their harvest before the damaging storm hit. 

Financial Implications and Growing Debt Concerns 

This weather event has significant financial implications for the farming community in Rewari. Many farmers had taken loans to invest in their fields, hoping to repay their debts after selling their harvest. Now, with crops damaged, their financial planning has been thrown into disarray.

Adding to their frustration, many farmers claim they haven't yet received compensation for previous crop damage incidents, and now face additional losses. This cycle of debt and damage is creating serious economic pressure on Haryana's agricultural communities. 

"We are borrowed money to plant our fields, We were expecting to clear the debt by selling the crops, but mother nature’s wrath has hit us again,” said a farmer from Rewari. “There’s no way to save our crops in these conditions, even if we want to.”

Surveys will be done by local agricultural department soon to estimate the damage and compensation but farmers are wary about the compensation sooner based on previous experience.