Untimely rain shatters farmers' dream in Ballari dist

Untimely rainfall in parts of Ballari, Koppal and Gadag districts on Wednesday destroyed post-harvest red chilli and paddy.

It rained heavily in Kurugodu town for half an hour affecting normal life. The post-harvest red chill and paddy spread on the ground in APMC premises for drying were washed away shattering dreams of farmers of making some profit.

Though the weather was normal throughout the day, it suddenly changed towards the evening as clouds gathered.

Farmers incurred losses due to heavy rains once the monsoon set in last year. However, some farmers had managed to grow and harvest chilli and paddy. They had dreamt of making some profit, but the untimely rainfall shattered their dreams, said Kaudekai Venkatesh, a farmer.

Venkatesh charged that there were no facilities for farmers at the APMC. Pleas seeking basic facilities had fallen on deaf ears.

Rainwater overflowed on roads, while many houses in low-lying areas were inundated for some time.

It rained for about 10 minutes at Naregal town in Gadag district. Farmers expressed concern over the untimely rainfall as it affected groundnuts, maize, jowar and other crops.

Koppal towns and a few neighbouring villages too received rain for about 15 minutes.