Unseasonal rain wreaks havoc on farmers in Sangli district

Kolhapur: Unseasonal rainfall swept across various parts of Sangli and Kolhapur districts between Tuesday and Wednesday, bringing unexpected weather to the area.On Wednesday afternoon, the tehsils of Karmala and Mangalwedha in Solapur district were struck by a significant hailstorm. As per reports, the hail caused substantial damage to local agriculture, particularly impacting pomegranate plantations.Palus, Bhilawadi and Audumbur areas in Sangli received rainfall with gusty winds during the night hours. The showers started around 11.30pm and continued till 1.30am.The extent of the damage caused by the rain in Bhilawadi town was revealed in the morning with farmers reporting loss to banana, coconut and mango plantations along with marigold and rose.Sheetal Suryawanshi, a farmer from Ankalkhop village in Palus tehsil of Sangli district, said he has suffered damages worth lakhs of rupees."I harvested one container of bananas and guava and was about to dispatch them. The second load was scheduled for dispatch by May 5. However, the rain coupled with strong winds damaged the fruits in the harvesting stage. The damage incurred is in lakhs. Hope the govt pays attention and helps the farmers like us to come out of the crisis," Suryawanshi said.Meanwhile, power supply in several rural areas was disrupted at night and was restored only by Wednesday afternoon. In Kolhapur city, waterlogging was seen in several low-lying areas.