PANAJI: Paddy harvesting has begun in some parts of Goa whereas others parts harvesting has been postponed for a day or two. After some years, copious rains have significantly boosted Goa paddy crop, but the vagaries of the monsoon could disturb the happy farmers’ mood, said farmers.

A Sattari taluka farmer Mr Gadgil said "we are expecting very good yield, about 5 to 10 per cent, but the farmers at the border of Goa and Maharashtra, are keeping their fingers crossed for sunny days to start harvesting." More copious rains could jeopardize their bumper crop, he adds.

Harvesting has begun in parts of Salcette taluka and Tiswadi, whereas others parts harvesting has been postponed for another day or two, said zonal agriculture officers.

Last year Goa received about l.20 lakh tonnes of paddy crop, and this year farmers have been looking forward to better yield. "We expect over five per cent crop production over last year," said a senior agriculture officer at the Goa Agriculture Department.

"This year we moved a special file, where the government will give subsidy directly to the farmers at the field site," said a very prominent person in Curtorim. Earlier, the farmers would visit the zonal offices for the subsidies of ` 2000 an hour for hiring the machine class harvester.

"Today the subsidy has been bettered to ` 1,000 an hour, benefiting the farmers by 200 per cent," the source said. He said although the paddy fields at Curtorim are almost matured and ready for harvesting, it has been postponed for a day or two.

A zonal agriculture officer said in the past few years the dry spells between the monsoon, especially during the grain formation stages or the milky stage would be severely affected, rendering empty grains, this year it is not expected.