Aug. 12: A day after the Durgapur barrage authorities stopped releasing water because of receding levels at the Maithon and Panchet reservoirs, Tilpara barrage in Birbhum turned off its supply to Murshidabad.

The district, which had scant rain in July, is still left with about 30 per cent of aman paddy transplantation.

Agriculture officials in Behrampore said the Tilpara authorities shut the taps because of receding level at the reservoir. “Water will be released after review a week later. We hope there is more rain and the situation improves,” an official said.

The principal agriculture officer of Murshidabad, Krishna Chandra Bag, said the season for transplantation will be over in about a week and it appears that the farmers will not be able complete the transplantation.

The district usually receives around 1,150 mm of rain between May and mid-August. “But, so far, we have received 731 mm. In the first 12 days of August there was 60 mm of rain. Rain was less in Birbhum as well, leading to a sharp drop in the level at Tilpara,” said an official of the district irrigation department.

Abdul Halim, a farmer at Jeebanti village in Kandi subdivision, where transplantation has been badly hit, said: “I hoped to carry out transplantation on 10 bighas and in the absence of rain, fell back on water from the canals. Now, I will not be able transplant saplings on at least 3 bighas.”

In Calcutta, agriculture director Dhabaleswar Konar said: “The situation is slowly improving. The cultivation season will last for another 12 days. Hopefully, it will rain normally during the period.”

Rainfall has been deficient in some blocks of Purulia, Bankura, West Midnapore and Burdwan, officials said, adding that on an average, 34 per cent transplantation was still unfinished.