Team Goemkarponn
Panaji: The Goa government has admitted that extreme weather conditions such as heatwaves, unseasonal rains, cyclones, and floods have significantly impacted the State’s agricultural output over the past few years. However, the Department of Agriculture has not conducted or commissioned any special study into the matter since 2022, it was revealed in the Legislative Assembly.
Responding to a question by Fatorda MLA Vijai Sardesai, Agriculture Minister Ravi Naik listed the effects of climatic extremes on major crops. Mango, coconut, and cashew have suffered from reduced flowering and fruit setting due to heatwaves, while unseasonal rains have damaged paddy and vegetable crops, particularly during the flowering and maturity stages. Cyclones have caused physical destruction to fruit trees such as banana, and flooding has repeatedly hit low-lying paddy fields during the seedling and transplanting stages.
While the State has implemented the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) crop insurance scheme—which covers a range of weather-related events including drought, cyclones, and floods—extreme heat is not listed as a separate peril. However, farmers may be eligible for compensation if heat-related yield loss is confirmed through Crop Cutting Experiments (CCEs), the Minister clarified.
In another major revelation, the Department confirmed that no specific study has been carried out regarding the decline in agricultural land in Goa. Area-wise data under cultivation has been provided in annexures, but without any analysis on the reasons for decline.
On the matter of No Objection Certificates (NOCs) declaring land as uncultivable, the Minister clarified that the department has not issued any such NOCs from April 2023 till date.
The disclosures point to a lack of systematic policy response despite increasing instances of climate-related disruptions in the State’s agricultural sector. With certified data provided on crop-wise trends in area and yield (Annexure-I), the absence of in-depth impact studies or land-use analysis has drawn criticism from stakeholders calling for climate-resilient planning and real-time farmer support systems.
