Burning Of Farm Pumps As Additional Burden On Farmers In Karimnagar

Deficit rainfall has been recorded during the monsoon season due to El Nino, resulting in insufficient inflows into water bodies. To protect standing crops, farmers are drawing available water from borewells and open wells. However, frequent burning of agricultural motors has become an added worry for them.

Farmers and mechanics say the burning of pump sets is due to low voltage and frequent power cuts. Transformers have also burnt in some areas. The problem has intensified over the past week.

Farmers have to spend ₹3,000 to ₹5,000 to repair burned motors. If only the winding is damaged, the repairs cost around ₹3,000, while damage to clutch plates and other equipment can increase the cost to ₹5,000.

Recently, several motors and transformers became defunct in Cherlabuthkur of Karimnagar rural mandal. D. Kumaraswamy, a farmer from the village, said his and another motor connected to the same transformer were burnt. The transformer also got burnt, he said.

Kumaraswamy said the frequent interruptions in power supply had affected the supply of water to his paddy crop. Repairing motors was an additional burden, he said, adding that lifting pump sets from wells required three to four persons. He has cultivated paddy on 10 acres.

Another farmer from Chegurthi, M. Sampath, said interruptions in power supply was responsible for the burning of motors. Though the government claimed that 12 hours of three-phase power was being supplied to the agriculture sector, farmers were getting the supply for only six to seven hours, he said.

He said power supply, which was expected to start at 5am, was often being provided only from 7am or 8am and stopped at 5 pm. The supply was also interrupted several times during the day and there was no clarity on when it would be restored, he said.

Sampath, who sowed paddy on eight acres, had his pump set repaired a few days ago.

Motor mechanic Ch. Anand of Durshad said he was repairing two to three motors every day. As Karimnagar was nearby, most farmers from surrounding villages brought their motors to the town for repairs, he said.

Another mechanic from Karimnagar town, B Kanthaiah, said low voltage was the main reason for motors burning. He said low voltage could go unnoticed because the pump sets were installed in water and the sound of the motor could not be easily heard. If a motor was operated continuously, it could burn after some time, he said.

Electricity department sources, however, said overload was the main reason. With inadequate rainfall, farmers were depending heavily on groundwater and operating motors continuously to draw water, the sources said.