Madhya Pradesh farmers fear losses due to shortage of labour amid lockdown 

Many farmers in Madhya Pradesh's Chhatarpur are facing losses as they are unable to harvest crops due to the shortage of labourers amid the nationwide COVID-19 lockdown. Farmers said that the labourers were in their homes, following guidelines issued by the government to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

"Last year, our crop was ruined due to natural causes. This year, the crop is ready, but no one to harvest it. Many of us are worried that we may lose our crop due to delay in harvesting," said Sonu, one of the farmers in the district.

Another farmer said that if the crop is not harvested on time, they might not be able to feed themselves through the season.

As per officials, the farmers have been granted permission for harvesting machine despite lockdown.  However, some farmers have alleged that they did not receive the benefits of the harvesting machine. An official said that the harvest machine operators have been directed to work as per the government's guidelines.

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Rahul Gandhi says farmers be allowed to harvest crops

On Wednesday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi called for relief to farmers during the COVID-19 lockdown by allowing them to harvest crops while maintaining safety, saying this is the only way out as they are facing a double whammy.

"The Rabi crop stands ready in the fields but the harvesting of the crop due to Covid19 lockdown is difficult. The livelihoods of hundreds of farmers are at risk," he said in a tweet in Hindi. "Those farmers who feed the country are today in dual trouble. The only way out is to give relief to them in the lockdown while maintaining safety is to allow them harvesting," he said.

The Congress leader had earlier called for adopting a nuanced approach to tackle the situation in India, as the situation here is different from other nations. The harvest of winter crops in Madhya Pradesh typically happens in mid-March after which the crops are procured by government and private agencies for shipping to markets. Due to the lockdown and the subsequent halt in the supply chain, farmers are particularly hit due to transportation woes and large, unsold inventory.

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