When monsoon arrives on time, nobody feels happier and more
liberated than the farmer. This year, however, the late arrival
of monsoon around the country has left the farmers anxious and
troubled. By mid July, fields should have turned green with
recently planted paddy but this has not happened yet. In many
parts of the country, where agriculture is predominantly rain
fed, erratic monsoons have caused an extreme situations with
farmers at one end gazing at the sky and hoping for rain, while
another set of farmers dealing with the nuisance of heavy
floods. Many fear that late plantation due to these problems may
affect production, resulting in reduced harvest. It is a cause
of concern that something does not seem right with the climate –
rainfall is more erratic and heavy downpours and a long drought
has been making farmers exceedingly nervous. Traditional
knowledge of planting and harvesting crops seems to be failing
all across the country. Experts say these new, and hitherto
unknown, situations are a result