Various forces and organizations are joining hands to help people in the highlands harvest their spring rice crop.

Join hands to support the people in harvesting rice.

On the afternoon of May 15th, in the spirit of joining hands to help people, especially disadvantaged and lonely households, harvest their spring rice crop, the Agricultural Services Center, in coordination with the Youth Union of the District Police and the People's Committee of Que Phong District, organized a rice harvesting assistance program for Mr. Lo Quoc Ngan's family in Thanh Phong village, Muong Ngoc commune.

Mr. Phan Xuan Hung, Deputy Director of the Agricultural Services Center of Que Phong district, said that this activity, carried out by agencies and units in the district, both helps families with few members and contributes to the successful implementation of the 2024 spring crop production in the locality. Mr. Ngan's son is currently serving in the military, leaving only his elderly parents at home. Thanks to the participation of more than 20 people, over 2 acres of ripe rice belonging to Mr. Ngan were harvested and threshed neatly on the afternoon of May 15th.

Muong Ngoc is one of the communes with a large rice-growing area in Que Phong district, with 205 hectares. A significant portion of this area is planted with Japonica rice, which yields high productivity and quality, making it a major source of income for the people of Muong Ngoc commune. In other communes, especially border communes, the armed forces and military units stationed there also actively support the people in harvesting the rice.

Similarly, in Mon Son commune (Con Cuong district), it is currently the time for people to harvest rice. Therefore, the Mon Son Border Guard Post, in coordination with other forces such as the youth union, women's association, and the commune police branch, is helping people harvest and thresh rice right in the fields. Mr. Luong Van Ty from Tan Son village said that his family has more than 2 sao (approximately 2,000 square meters) of rice, but because his wife is currently suffering from a serious illness and cannot work, the rice is ripe but they lack manpower. Thanks to the help of the Party committee and the local government, the rice was harvested and threshed in just one morning. The family only needs to dry and store it, no longer worrying about rain or wind.

In Tuong Duong district, officers and soldiers from the Tam Hop and Tam Quang border guard posts also mobilized their forces to help local people harvest rice. Early on the morning of May 17th, Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Ngoc Tan, Political Officer of the Tam Quang Border Guard Post, said that the unit sent 7 officers and soldiers to help two households, those of Ms. La Thi Thuong and Ms. La Thi Thoa in Tung Huong village, harvest 4 sao (approximately 0.4 hectares) of rice and thresh it right in the field. These are households that the unit is responsible for developing as part of an economic development model, including near-poor households with difficult circumstances and single-parent families in the commune.

Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Ngoc Cam, Deputy Head of Political Affairs of the Provincial Border Guard, said that in border communes, people are currently harvesting the spring rice crop. The unit has directed border guard posts to actively assist people in harvesting, especially helping single-parent and disadvantaged families, and families whose children are being sponsored by the border guard posts. To date, border guard posts have mobilized more than 100 officers and soldiers to help 18 families harvest over 6 hectares of spring rice; contributing to helping people harvest the crop quickly and avoid losses caused by unfavorable weather conditions.

Harvest the rice as soon as it ripens.

These days, the family of Mr. Lo Van Tuan in Na Cay village, Tien Phong commune (Que Phong district) is mobilizing manpower to harvest the spring rice crop. Mr. Tuan planted 2 hectares of spring rice, and he said that this year's spring rice crop is bountiful, with plump grains, promising high yields, so his family is very excited about the harvest. Furthermore, May often brings unpredictable rain and even thunderstorms, so following the guidance of agricultural officials from the commune and district, his family is rushing to harvest. Areas with uniform ripeness, exceeding 80%, are harvested first. The entire Tien Phong commune planted about 300 hectares of spring rice, concentrated in Na Cay, Phuong Tien 1, and Dan villages…

In the spring of 2024, Que Phong district planted approximately 2,700 hectares of rice, spread evenly across most localities in the district. However, according to Mr. Phan Xuan Hung, Deputy Director of the Que Phong District Agricultural Services Center, the largest area of ​​spring rice cultivation is concentrated in the central communes, with an average area of ​​about 100 hectares per commune. Some localities have large rice-growing areas such as Muong Ngoc and Chau Kim with about 200 hectares per commune, and Tien Phong with about 300 hectares. Notably, Tri Le commune has 450 hectares…

Mr. Phan Xuan Hung stated that currently, the 2024 spring rice crop in Que Phong district is in the milky to ripening stage, while the late crop is in the milky stage (mainly in Tri Le commune). Given the extreme weather patterns recently, harvesting rice as it ripens is crucial to minimize losses. In mountainous areas, the rainy season from April to September is typically sunny in the morning and rainy in the afternoon. Therefore, the District Department of Agriculture and Rural Development advises farmers to focus on harvesting in the early morning until before 3 PM daily to avoid rain, wind, thunderstorms, tornadoes, and hailstorms.

In Ky Son district, Mr. Nguyen Ba Cuong, Deputy Head of the District Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said that the entire district planted about 220 hectares of rice in the spring of 2024, mainly concentrated in communes such as Huu Kiem, Chieu Luu, Huu Lap, and Na Ngoi… By mid-May 2024, the rice in these localities had begun to ripen. However, this is also a time of unusual weather patterns; most recently, Ky Son district experienced three consecutive hailstorms and tornadoes, causing severe damage to houses and crops. Therefore, the district directed people to harvest in stages, selecting fields with a high percentage of ripe rice, and harvesting in more remote areas first.

According to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Nghe An province planted 91,075 hectares of rice in the spring of 2024, reaching 100.64% of the planned target by mid-May. Over 5,000 hectares of spring rice have been harvested throughout the province, mainly in lowland districts such as Yen Thanh and Dien Chau. In the higher-lying districts, where the climate is colder and the rice ripens later, farmers are only now beginning the harvest. The province aims for a total food production of approximately 1.2 million tons in 2024; of which, the spring crop of 2024 is expected to yield 703,625 tons, contributing significantly to the overall target for the year.