MORIGAON, July 18 - Hinting at an alarming situation for the farmers of Morigaon district, the Meteorological Department forecasted that there will be 30 per cent deficit rainfall in the district in current monsoon season and a drought-like situation will prevail in the district.
It may be mentioned here that the district generally faces flood and erosion problems caused by Brahmaputra river which devastate agriculture fields of riverine areas of Lahorighat, Bhuragaon and Mayong circles.
The standing sali crops measuring thousands hectares of land are devastated every year due to the Brahmaputra flood. So, sali is a �chance crop� for the farmers of Morigaon district. For the rabi crops and the kharif crops, farmers usually depend upon the weather. On the other hand, to face the drought-like situation, the Irrigation department of the State government is not well equipped.
According to sources, more than 20 irrigation schemes in Morigaon district are in defunct state. However, under the Chief Minister�s Samagra Gramya Unnayan Yojana, 216 tractors were distributed among the farmers of the district. But the need of the hour is to revitalise the government irrigation schemes in the district.
Moreover, the government machinery must come forward to help the poor farmers of the district by distributing free seeds of rabi crops. Facing the drought-like situation during the monsoon season in Morigaon district will be the biggest challenge for the Agriculture and Irrigation departments in the coming days.
