The rice production has gone down in the Cauvery Delta Zone and Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu. The Cauvery Delta Zone is located in the Western part of the state. One of the reasons for this problem is the scarcity of rainfall. Due to this, the price of rice has increased by Rs 5-10 per kg this year compared to 2023. The prices of other rice varieties including Basmati rice have also seen an upward trend in the last couple of months. Ponni raw rice is a popular variety of rice that is mainly grown in the Southern part of India.
To help the farmers, the government and private traders are helping them by purchasing their produce at a higher price. The government is purchasing the Price Monitoring Division. PMD is a part of in the Department of Consumer Affairs and is responsible for monitoring prices of selected essential commodities.
In the Cauvery Delta Zone, cultivation for rice varieties like Arubatham Kuruvai, Samba, and Thaladi is usually done. For the cultivation of these varieties, water is released for irrigation on June 12 every year. The flourishing yield of these crops depends on two factors. If the water is released on the specified date and there is a continuous flow of water in the river without shortage, the yield area will increase. Otherwise, there will be a slump in the yield. The second scenario followed in the Cauvery Delta Zone due to the shortage of water in the Mettur dam. The dam was closed for a couple of months due to the water shortage and this had a devastating impact on the Arubatham Kuruvai variety. Farmers then planted the Samba variety and had to rely on the rainfall for the growth of crops.
Now, as low rainfall has been recorded, the production of the Samba rice variety has also gone down. Earlier, it used to be 1,800 kg to 2,000 kg per acre rice yield in delta districts.
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