Rising temperatures: Kerala farmers suffer loss of Rs 500 cr in last three months

Thiruvananthapuram: Rising temperatures and drought have destroyed 46,690 hectares of farmland in Kerala, with a review committee estimating an immediate loss of Rs 250 crore in the last three months across 23,569 acres of land. When considering production losses, the total damage could exceed Rs 500 cr. It is estimated that 56,947 farmers have been directly impacted by the drought.

The review was conducted by an expert committee formed by the agricultural department. The committee members visited several districts on a block-level basis to assess factors such as crop growth, production shortage, long-term negative impacts, crop health, and damages.

The committee has already submitted the report to Kerala Agricultural Minister P Prasad, with indications suggesting the state may seek relief from the union government for the losses.

Idukki, Thrissur, Palakkad, and Wayanad were the worst affected by crop damage, particularly affecting cardamom, paddy, pepper, and banana plants. 

More than 30% of cardamom cultivation suffered damage, resulting in a 60% yield reduction. Banana cultivation across over 2800 hectares of land, targeting the Onam special market, was also severely impacted. Coffee and vegetable cultivations faced setbacks, with Wayanad reporting pepper crop losses across 419.5 hectares and coffee losses across 208 hectares.

The review further highlighted that the drought could push 60,000 small-scale and micro-scale farmers, as well as farm labourers, into financial crises. 

It's expected that areas experiencing total crop damage will face shortages of resources related to sowing during revitilisation activities.