Amid autumn magic, Kashmiri farmers harvest gold Submitted by admin4 on 14 September 2011 - 12:33pm FeaturesIndia NewsIndian Muslim

By Sheikh Qayoom, IANS, Srinagar : As grain-laden stalks of golden yellow impart a magical hue to the pa ddy fields of the Kashmir Valley, for local farmers, the season of plenty is her e at last. And they have to get the work done quickly, come rain, storm or labou r shortage. There is a nip in the morning and evening air, but harvesting their year's labou r is top priority for thousands of families engaged in paddy cultivation. "Labour is hard to come by these days, one has to depend mostly on one's family to reap, thresh and shift the paddy this year," said Muhammad Rajab, 52, a farme r in north Kashmir Ganderbal district. The unemployed in the rural areas of Ganderbal district and elsewhere in the sta te are engaged in various programmes being executed these days under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA). "I get Rs.140 per day and the flood protection work being carried out in the vil lage is close to my home. This year I have not been troubled to look for work ou tside the villages because of NREGA," Sultan Dar, 34, a villager in Ganderbal di strict, told IANS. Weather is one of the most critical and limiting factors and dictates haste to t he farmers once the paddy turns ripe. "When the grains are mature and heavy, they droop and the stalks bearing them st art giving way. Harvesting must take place quickly so that the grains do not fal l down," said Nazir Ahmad Mir, 42, a farmer in Benhama village of Ganderbal dist rict. "Also, a light rain or god forbid, a hailstorm, can rid the paddy plants of thei r grains. Thus, harvesting, gathering and threshing has to happen in quick succe ssion." The majority of the valley's paddy is produced in the south Kashmir districts of Anantnag, Pulwama, Kulgam and Shopian and for this reason, south Kashmir has be en called the rice bowl of the valley. "But no longer. Most of the agricultural land in the valley has been converted i nto residential plots and sold at exorbitant prices as paddy cultivation has nev er been a profitable vocation here," said Bashir Ahmad War, a retired veterinari an here. "The agricultural lands are protected under local laws and the 'A' grade agricul tural lands have been reserved exclusively for paddy cultivation. No constructio n, conversion is allowed under the state laws on these lands, but unscrupulous r evenue officials tamper with the records and facilitate the sales of these agric ultural lands." Even though pollution has been weighing heavily on the local environment, includ ing lakes, rivers, forests, wetlands, most of the mountain streams and rivers fo rtunately still run crystal clear, murmuring as they tumble over stones and sand . "There is no music like the music of a brook. It is more soothing than Mozart. W e are callous, self-destructive and ignorant. One day even what is left of the m

ountains, forests and wetlands will be lost. Nobody seems to bother. What is our concern for posterity?" professor Muzaffar Ahmad, a local college principal, to ld IANS. Despite the colossal damage suffered by local forests, lakes, rivers and wetland s, Kashmir is still the most beautiful place one can ever visit. And for farmers, the first priority continues to be the timely harvesting of the ir produce. "Time and tide wait for none, a light rain or an autumnal hailstorm can undo the whole year's toil," said Hassan Parray, another farmer in Haripora village on t he Srinagar-Leh national highway. (Sheikh Qayoom can be contacted at sheikh.abdul@ians.in)