Unseasonal rains have farmers worried

RAJKOT: Unseasonal rainfall has once again come to haunt the farmers in Saurashtra, Kutch and north Gujarat as sporadic showers were reported in these areas on Monday evening.
India Meteorological Department (IMD) officials said the rainfall occurred at isolated places in the regions and the weather was dry elsewhere.
The weather remained partly cloudy on Tuesday in these regions leaving many farmers worried about their crops.An extended monsoon has already damaged agricultural output in many parts of the state
However, no warning for rainfall has been issued by the IMD. It said the weather would remain partly cloudy.
"Even if there is no rainfall, the cloudy weather is harmful to the crops, especially cumin. Many farmers in the villages near Salya town have noticed diseases in the cumin crop due to the change in the weather pattern," said Valji Patel, a farmer from Sayla town in Surendranagar district.
The scattered rainfall was reported in Jamnagar district, Naliya, Abdasa, Lakhpat and Bhachau in Kutch district, Sami in Patan district and in Mehsana among other places in the three regions.
Weather officials said there was a marked fall in night temperatures on Monday in parts of Kutch. Fourteen Degree Celsius was the lowest temperature and it was recorded at Naliya town in Kutch district.