Karnataka crop damage put at Rs 154 crore

Excess rainfall in July and August has caused damage worth Rs 153.70 crore to Karnataka's kharif horticultural crops.

A senior official in the Karnataka's horticulture department said the worst affected areas were Western Ghats districts of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Kodagu, Chikmagalur followed by north interior parts of the state, comprising districts of Haveri, Belgaum, Bagalkot, Dharwad and Gadag. 

RAIN-HIT Crop loss due to heavy rainfall in Karnataka till Sept 29
Name	Farmers affected	Area affected (hectares)	Total loss (Rs crore)
Potato	32,063	19,453.20	49.16
Tomato	585	331.75	2.08
Chilli	3,616	3,865.50	9.76
Onion	2,281	6,794.00	20.59
Banana	4,870	3,581.69	17.05
Mango	571	466.01	3.25
Coconut	299	366.74	0.69
Arecanut	6,107	1,133.68	10.77
Pepper	15,343	5,149.84	10.42
Ginger/turmeric	3,515	1,902.10	13.21
Cardamom	7,519	2,618.50	3.96
Betelvine	275	105.06	0.53

Potato, tomato, chilli, onion, banana, mango, coconut, arecanut, pepper, cardamom, and betelvine crops have been affected. "The damage is estimated to be worth Rs 153.70 crore. In all, about 48,826 hectares have been affected involving 80,485 farmers," he said.

However, in other regions (which are known for potato, onion, tomato and chilli crops), intercropping, land/nursery bed preparation and transplant operations are under progress. Harvesting is taking place in some districts, which were not affected by excess rains.