Wheat Overflow Crisis: Bumper Harvest Spills onto Haryana Roads and Schools

A bumper wheat harvest has created chaos across Haryana as farmers struggle to find space for their produce, forcing many to dump grain on roads, in schools, and open fields. With nearly 46% of already procured wheat yet to be lifted from mandis, the situation has reached critical levels in several districts.

In Madina village, Rohtak, the main internal road has disappeared under mountains of wheat, causing significant traffic disruptions. "We have no option but to dump our produce on the road due to shortage of space at the local mandi," explained Naresh, a local farmer. The situation became so desperate that some farmers temporarily stored grain on a government school's premises, prompting the principal to issue a legal warning. 

The crisis stems from a perfect storm of factors: mechanized harvesting with combined harvesters has accelerated grain arrivals, while transportation and storage infrastructure hasn't kept pace. According to state data, lifting operations are proceeding at an alarmingly slow rate, with Panchkula reporting the lowest at just 25.25% of stocks cleared, followed by Kaithal (26.05%) and Jind (30.92%). 

Meham's Sub-Divisional Magistrate Dalbir Singh acknowledged the recurring nature of this problem and revealed, "A proposal has been prepared to establish a bigger grain market/purchase center at a different location. This would resolve the matter permanently."

The situation is particularly dire in places like Nigdhu, Assandh, and Sagga, where only 29% of wheat has been lifted. "We are already under pressure due to unpredictable rain last week. Now, the slow lifting has made things worse," lamented Kashmir Lal, a farmer from Nigdhu. 

Mewat emerged as the topper with 81.77% wheat lifted while the state average is 45.48%. Officials have promised to take action as ADC Yash Jaluka assured that agencies have been directed to visit grain markets for procurement.