Even if the farmers of Pallahara have started their cultivation work for the monsoon season but deficient rain has been a headache for them.
The famers alleged that due to the lack of rain, the Mankada river has dried up and is unable to discharge water to canals. The farmers of the area are heavily dependent on the canal water for Kharif cultivation.
Notably, there is 20,622 hectares of cultivable land in Pallahara block out of which paddy is taken up in10,500 hectares. About 4,000 hectares land is irrigated and the rest is on rainfed.
Sources said that there are 13 minor irrigation projects in Pallahara block of which six are totally defunct since long. The transplanting and broadcasting of paddy have been hampered due to scarcity of irrigation facilities and low rainfall.
The farmers have demanded the local MP and MLA to look in to the matter seriously and take steps for broadening irrigation facilities.