“Unusually severe rains this year caused devastating damage to the region’s agriculture and horticulture sectors, which are the main drivers of the local economy and essential for jobs and food supplies specifically crops like apples, saffron, and rice.”
Heavy rains and cloudbursts wrecked havoc in several parts of Jammu and Kashmir this year. The agriculture and horticulture sectors took the hardest hits. These parts drive much of the region’s economy. Farmers grow apples, saffron, and rice on terraced fields and valleys. Without them, jobs and food supplies suffer. The rains struck harder than ever before this year. Experts believed that 27% more rain than the usual was recorded in Jammu & Kashmir and excessive rainfall caused collateral damage to both the public property and as well as the key infrastructural facilities. In August and September, fierce downpours flooded many districts. Rivers swelled and broke their banks. Water rushed into towns and villages in many parts of Jammu region and South Kashmir district. Some areas lost all road links. People could not move goods to safer locations. Landslides buried paths and homes. Floods washed away standing structures in parts of Chenab Valley in Jammu region. Silt clogged fields and streams. Roads cracked and collapsed under the weight of mud and rocks. Standing crops drowned in the muck. Rice paddies turned to swamps. Fruit orchards lost trees to erosion. The damage spread wide. One report from the local agriculture office noted over 10,000 hectares of farmland ruined. That means less harvest for the coming months. Kharif crops—those planted in the rainy season like corn and vegetables—faced the worst. In Jammu and Kashmir, floods sank fields. Seeds washed away before they could sprout.
“Jammu and Kashmir must urgently adopt modern forecasting tools and implement concrete infrastructure upgrades (stronger roads, effective drainage, dam management) to proactively prepare for and mitigate the dangers of heavy rains, moving from reactive hope to decisive action.”
Experts warn this could cut yields by half in hit spots. Farmers already struggle with high costs. Now they face empty barns and debts. Reservoirs filled to the brim from the rains. Lakes and ponds overflowed. This should help in dry times. Yet the water turned against the land. It carved new paths through villages. In Jammu district, cloudbursts hit hard. These are intense storms that dump rain in minutes. Locals recalled the 2014 floods that killed hundreds. Panic spread in twin capital cities Srinagar Jammu cities besides many districts of Jammu region and South Kashmir. Districts in the Kashmir Valley saw the same fear. Rescue teams worked day and night to pull people from rooftops. The India Meteorological Department tracked it all. They called the rains “above normal” for northwest India. Their warnings came early. Accurate forecasts save lives. Jammu and Kashmir did not prepare enough. No one braced for floods on the same scale. Better tools exist now. Satellites spot storms from space. Apps send alerts to phones. Dams can release water to ease pressure. Roads need stronger walls against slides. Governments must shift their view. Heavy rains demand action, not hope. Failing to ready for them leaves people exposed. It breaks trust in leaders. Jammu and Kashmir deserves walls that stand, fields that drain, and plans that work. The cost of delay shows in every flooded home and lost crop.
