A former senior official from the Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR), Gobind Ballabh Raturi, told The Indian Express, “Farmers in the Doon Valley can look forward to a good rabi crop. Thanks to the successful monsoon, the region is likely to witness good mustard, wheat and vegetable crops over the next few months.”

The Doon Valley is known for its high-yielding agricultural belt, starting from Vikasnagar in the north to Rishikesh in the south. The rabi crops that are grown here include wheat, mustard and vegetables, with peas being the most important cash crop.

The director of the Meteorological Department in Dehradun, Dr Anand Sharma says, “The most interesting feature of this year’s monsoon has been that the rains were well spread. The distribution was very good. During the months of June, July and September, there was good rainfall every week. Despite there being a slight lull in September, the Valley did receive rains and a small Western Disturbance is likely to bring showers till October 9.” He added that the moisture levels in the soil are very high, making it ideal for sowing the rabi crop.

Giving details about the rainfall pattern, Dr Sharma disclosed that during this monsoon season, stretching from June to September, the Doon valley has received 2,240 mm of rainfall. The average figure for the state of Uttarakhand stood at 1,199 mm.

Although the region has been experiencing a similar quantity of rainfall in previous years as well, this year saw an exceptionally good distribution with barely a day passing without some area receiving rain showers.

This has also led to the present kharif crop, which is to be harvested from the end of October onwards, being in very good shape. In terms of the kharif crop, the region is well known for its high production of sugarcane and paddy. The rains this year have ensured that there was no need for the farmers to irrigate their fields. “The soil was saturated and there was no water stress. The farmers did not have to spend on electricity and labour to irrigate their fields,” said Dr Sharma.

He further pointed out that the continuing cloud cover in the month of October might lead to some damage to the paddy crop in certain places due to blast fungus, but the problem can be curbed if farmers monitor their crops carefully and spray fungicide after the Western Disturbance moves away. He suggested that the sprays may only be resorted to if the disease is exceeding the economic threshold value of the crop.

Total Rainfall

2007

June 225 mm

July 715 mm

August 735 mm

Sept 325mm

2008

June 593.8 mm

July 773.8 mm

August 711.9 mm

Sept 161 mm