Authorities fail to come to the rescue of farmers, orchardists THE recent hailstorms which hit major parts of Kashmir valley and the upper reaches of Jammu region and damaged the crops wherever sowing operations are nearing completion should send alarming signals in the corridors of power. But unfortunately, things do not appear to have moved anyone in the government despite the fact that the farming community has been crying loudly to take note of their losses. Heavy rains coupled with hailstorm was fourth in less than a week in various parts of Jammu and Kashmir and reports pouring in from the countryside have indicated that crops and seedlings have been damaged to a large extent. Apart from this, fruit crops have also been damaged in several parts of J&K. Surprisingly, the agriculture and horticulture departments have not been able to come out with their assessments of the losses suffered by the farmers and orchardists during the previous crop season. The losses in the cash crop sector that have caused severe shortage of vegetables and other perishable commodities are also yet to be assessed by the government agencies. Previously, the farmers have been agitating against the delay in the supply of quality seeds by the concerned department besides inavailability of the chemical fertilizers well in time. But none in the government appears to have taken a note of the situation. After the failure of the last year's crops in most parts of Jammu region and some parts of the valley, the chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad had acknowledged that all was not well on the food security front. This was mainly due to the reason that most hilly areas of the state had witnessed a crop failure to the extent of 80 percent and the chief minister promised the farmers that the government will take up the issue with the centre and seek some sort of relief for them. But no proposal appears to have been put forward before the central authorities till date. The government was still in the process of making its assessment in respect of the agriculture and fruit crops of the last year. Nobody in the government is sure when these proposals will be finalized and put before the centre for seeking the relief. If the similar situation continues then the farmers will have to look for alternative ways and means to fend for themselves. Sadly, the slow pace of working in the government that does not hold anybody accountable for the delays is likely to hit the farming community badly in the days to come. The promises of providing free rations for only two months and then extend the same up to six months for the farmers badly affected by the crop failure have yet to be honoured. If things do not improve in the government's functioning, then the farmers will definitely be forced to take to the streets adding to the already bad law and order situation in J&K.