The protective irrigation through rain guns to wet the withering crops due to prolonged dry spell in Rayalaseema and other areas did not do enough to revive the crops as the intervention came late in the day, said members of opposition parties in the Legislative Council here on Friday.
The government, for the first time, deployed rain guns (micro irrigation devices) and tankers to protect the dry crops, particularly groundnut sown extensively by farmers in the drought-prone Rayalaseema districts.
While the crop should be wetted within 25 days after sowing to let pod formation, the rain guns were deployed when the crop was 50-55 days old, said YSR Congress leader Ummareddy Venkateswarulu in a discussion on ‘Drought situation in the State’.
Mr. Chengalrayudu of the Congress said he had toured some mandals in Rayalaseema to study the impact of rain guns. Groundnut crop withered in 50 per cent of the 22 lakh acres sown due to the dry spell in kharif. However, Telugu Desam member and Council Deputy Chairman Satish Reddy, disputing the opposition members’ claims, said that he had invited agricultural scientists to Pulivendula who examined the crop and said it would take a longer time for pod formation, but the crop would be saved.
