Solan: Hail storms are nightmares for fruit and vegetable growers of Himachal Pradesh. Hails causes huge financial losses to farmers every year. Farmers in some areas use anti-hail guns but it is very expensive. Moreover, there is no concrete data available regarding the efficiency of these guns.

Surprisingly, the government had been missing another crucial aspect that could help in the assessment of the guns: feedback from farmers. It is not sufficient to install an anti-hail gun on subsidized rates; farmers should also be aware of technical aspects so that they know how to use them most efficiently.

Though the WMO has documented that there is no physical evidence of anti-hail guns efficiency, the guns did find more utility when used in concordance with the radar.

It was revealed by Dr Anand Sharma, DGM, Indian Meteorological Department while speaking at a two-day workshop and interaction meet on ‘Management of Hailstorm for Sustainable Crop Production in Himachal Pradesh’ commenced at the Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry (UHF), Nauni on Friday.

The workshop is being organized by UHF’s Department of Environmental Science in collaboration with the Department of Horticulture, Government of Himachal Pradesh.

This is the first workshop of its kind to be held in the state.

The aforesaid issues were attended in the workshop along with interaction session with farmers using anti-hail guns in their areas.

The main objective of the workshop was to discuss the status of hailstorm occurrence and its impacts on mountain ecosystem,

explained Dr SK Bhardwaj, Head Department of Environmental Sciences

Eminent scientists from across the country, experts from IIT Bombay and Hyderabad, Indian Meteorological Department, DRDO along with progressive farmers from the state and representatives of private companies are also participating in the event.

Dr HC Sharma, UHF Vice-Chancellor was the Chief Guest for inaugural function. Principal Secretary Horticulture (HP) RD Dhiman and Additional Director Horticulture Dr. ML Dhiman also took part in the workshop.

During the several technical sessions, deliberations on various aspects of suitable hailstorm management technologies will be held with a focus on researchable issues for ensuring the suitable livelihood of farmers and strengthening the ‘Make in India’ initiative.

Climatic changes were occurring all around the world and preparations were needed for good crop and fruit cultivation,

said Dr HC Sharma, emphasizing on the need for continuous data resource requirement for assessing the impacts of anti-hail guns on precipitation in an area.

Dr. Sharma was of the view that the indigenous technologies under the ambit of Make in India should be explored for developing cheaper anti-hail guns in the country itself and stressed on long-term research assessments of this technology.

RD Dhiman, Principal Secretary Horticulture stated that the idea behind the workshop was to get feedback from the farmers who have been working in the areas where anti-hail guns have been operational.

He said that the climatic calamities such as hailstorms lead to financial losses for the farmers and such discussions showed the state government’s commitment to finding efficient solutions. He said that the workshop was a means to evolve scientific knowhow about the most effective and efficient ways for anti-hail measures.

Dr. ML Dhiman stressed on the need to address the challenges of hailstorms in the horticulture and vegetable growing belts of the state. He advised setting up permanent structures for anti-hail nets and suggested the utility of anti-hail guns in these areas as an efficient remedial measure.

Dr. JN Sharma, UHF Director of Research focused on the apple productivity research areas on which the university scientists have been working and highlighted the utility of the workshop for tackling newer issues that the farmers were facing.
Dr Anand also stressed on the need for crop insurance and the use of internet and Kisan portal.

In the second session on the theme ‘Frequency of occurrence and impacts of hailstorms on crop production in Himachal’, Dr. Anand Sharma, DGM IMD, and Dr. Manmohan Singh, Director, Regional MET Centre Shimla, explained the phenomenon of hailstorm formation and the Cumulonimbus clouds associated with it.

Dr. Sharma said that hail caused more than a billion dollar in losses all over the world each year. He was of the view that specific prediction of hail was very difficult and a challenge that needed further research.

He suggested developing microscale models for a particular area and setting up of radars in the state to predict the possibility of hail forming cloud movements. He also discussed mitigation strategies like weather modification through the use of silver iodide and anti-hail gun.

Dr Manmohan Singh addressed the participants on the status of hailstorms in the state. He explained how the occurrence of hailstorms had a varied frequency in the months of March, April, and May in different regions of the state. He also clarified that only a third of all Cumulonimbus clouds lead to hail. He also discussed various methods of dissemination of weather data.

During the interaction session between the farmers and scientists, six progressive farmers from the areas where anti-hail guns have been operational shared their experiences about the frequency and impacts of hailstorms in their respective areas and the advantages and disadvantages of the technology.

A farmer working with an NGO in the Khaneri area of Kotkhai shared that the lack of technical guidance regarding the usage of the anti-hail gun in their area was a concern.

Lack of maintenance of anti-hail guns and high costs of anti-hail nets were other issues raised by the farmers.

Pic: Tribune (Anti-hail gun)