Well-informed cotton growers associated with cooperatives and the Gujarat State Cotton Cooperatives Federation say 20 per cent of the total acreage has been hit by the unexpected showers. Weather office and agriculture officials add that apart from cotton, several irrigated crops including pulses and vegetables, which do not depend on rains, have been hit by the above-average rainfall. This was besides the adverse impact on crops because of late arrival of monsoon, this year.

General manager of the Cotton Corporation of India T B Rao and Maganbhai A Patel, the director of the state Agriculture department, said they were still studying the exact quantity of the damage though according to priliminary reports the damage was only to the extent of 5 per cent of the total crop and only in some areas of the State. ``However, a clearer picture in this context would be out in the next couple of days'', Patel said.

The farmers and members of Madhya Gujarat Sahakari Cotton Marketing Union and the Federation Express Newsline spoke to said Gujarat, which had topped the country's cotton production last year with 42 lakh bales, had been expecting a haul of more than 50 lakh bales this season. ``However, according to our estimate, 20 per cent of the total acrage of 15 lakh hectares in the State has been badly hit'', says Kishorbhai Shah, the Union manager and advisor to various other farmers' lobby groups.

Shah also says that picking (harvest) of cotton had begun last week only which meant the crops were completely ready for the harvest. According to him, the other three scheduled pickings may not compensate the farmers for the loss of their 25 per cent damage already done.

Federation vice-chairman Sudhakar Patel seconded Shah's opinion and also voiced the hope that the government agencies would support farmers in crises such as this one.

The experts said that the rains and the subsequent damage to the crops would also result in an increase in the expenditure of farmers for the existing crops; the farners would now have to put in extra labour, fertilisers and other steps to save and improve on the next crop.

Ironically, the Gujarati cotton farmer appears to have nowhere to go for compensation. Agriculture department officials say the loss -- which they put at 5 per cent -- is `normal'. The department, they say, would have done something to stand by the farmers had the damage been more severe. However, they say officials had begun counselling farmers about the next crop.