Diesel shortage puts brakes on tractor operations, Marathwada farmers forced back to oxen for ploughing as kharif clock ticks

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Farmers in parts of Marathwada are being forced to fall back on traditional oxen-driven ploughing as a diesel shortage cripples the use of tractors and other mechanised equipment.

Many told TOI that the older generation skilled in such methods is ageing, while younger farmers — accustomed exclusively to tractors — are struggling to adapt.In Beed, farmer Parvez Patel is staring at his unploughed land and an approaching monsoon with growing anxiety. “Pre-monsoon showers are expected anytime soon, and my entire 14-acre farm is yet to be ploughed. Diesel to run tractors and other mechanised tools of agriculture has become a rarity in our area,” Patel said.With the India Meteorological Department indicating that the southwest monsoon could hit Kerala around May 26 and move into Marathwada soon after, farmers fear any early showers could make ploughing even harder due to the wet soil conditions.The crisis has hit families like that of Keshav Sonawane, in Kannad taluka of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, where uncertainty has disrupted crucial farm preparations. “There is no diesel available to operate a tractor to plough my field.

My sons are running from pillar to post to get fuel, but there is a major shortage,” he said.Sonawane, who owns 24 acres along with his brothers, said reverting to oxen is now unavoidable. “I am too old to carry out ploughing using oxen. My sons have hardly ever done any agricultural work using traditional methods, and are skilled only in operating a tractor. However, we have to revert to traditional ploughing if fuel remains elusive,” he said.Across Marathwada’s 47-49 lakh hectares of kharif farmland, the effects are becoming visible. With many farmers having sold their oxen over the years (because of widespread use of tractors), those who still own them are suddenly in demand. “As tractors have become useless, farmers are getting requests for lending their oxen for ploughing activities. Ploughing is necessary to ensure timely sowing of kharif crops,” said Beed farmer Dnyandev Neharale.Farm leaders say the situation highlights a deeper structural vulnerability. “Barring some poor farmers, for most agriculturists, the use of oxen for farming has almost become a forgotten practice. Also, the traditional methods are tough to practice, especially given the summer heat when mercury levels hover over the 40 degree celsius mark,” said farmers’ leader Jayaji Suryawanshi, demanding a dedicated diesel quota for farmers.Officials, however, attribute the shortage to panic buying rather than a breakdown in supply. District supply officer Pravin Phulari said, “There has been a considerable increase in the lifting of diesel by farmers and other consumers out of panic buying, leading to a shortage. Against rising demand for fuel, the supply remains almost the same. Panic buying is causing a mismatch between supply and demand.”Meanwhile, fuel pumps across Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and other districts are witnessing long queues and intermittent supply, even as authorities insist the situation is stabilising and urge people to avoid hoarding.