Chandigarh, (Samajweekly) weather has been mostly dry over Punjab and Haryana since February 1, and this may impact the wheat crop, experts said.
The dry weather is due to absence of significant ‘western disturbances’, or storm systems originating from Caspian Sea and moving across the Afghanistan-Pakistan region, the meteorological office here said on Sunday.
Agricultural experts warned that the high temperatures and lack of precipitation may impact the wheat crop in both states, the country’s prominent granaries.
It asked the farmers that if the crop appears to be under stress, light irrigation can be provided.
The current maximum temperature in Punjab and Haryana is 4-5 degrees Celsius above average, whereas the minimum is 3-5 degrees above average, it said.
As per the Met office, weather is likely to be mainly dry over most parts of Punjab, Haryana, and Chandigarh in the next four-five days. Light drizzles are likely at isolated places over Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur districts and adjoining areas of Punjab on February 20 and and over Panchkula and adjoining area of Haryana on February 21.
No large change is likely in the maximum and minimum in the next four-five days over both states, including Chandigarh.
As per experts of Punjab Agricultural University in Ludhiana, if this trend continues in the coming days, this might lead to adverse effects on the wheat crop.
As the crop is approaching reproductive growth period, which is sensitive to temperature, the high temperature during post-anthesis period leads to loss in yield, said the PAU.
