Indian farmers in Punjab, Rajasthan complete wheat harvesting along Pakistan border amid ongoing tension

New Delhi: Indian farmers have completed wheat harvesting in areas adjoining the Pakistan border in the key growing states of Punjab and Rajasthan, government officials said on Thursday.

"Wheat crop has been harvested by now," Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra said at a press conference when asked about the status of harvesting near the India-Pakistan border, which spans approximately 3,310 kilometres across Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, and Jammu and Kashmir.

While no separate data on the total wheat quantity harvested from border areas is available, Agriculture Commissioner Praveen Kumar Singh noted that Punjab has a significant area under wheat cultivation near the border compared to other states.

"Farmers have harvested the crop. The yield is better this time," Singh told PTI.

In Rajasthan, wheat cultivation primarily occurs in the Ganganagar district near the border, along with Hanumangarh and Jaisalmer. A Rajasthan government official confirmed that "farmers have fully harvested their crops".

Sources said wheat farmers in these border states were asked to expedite harvesting due to heightened tensions between India and Pakistan, following the deadly attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir, on April 22.

The early harvest directive was part of precautionary measures taken by authorities in response to the security situation along the international border.