Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday said his government had notified a special girdawari to assess crop damage due to recent rains, even as initial estimates suggested losses over 1.2 lakh acres.“We will compensate farmers for whatever losses they have suffered. My government stands by them,” Mann told mediapersons here.Fazilka was the worst hit, followed by Muktsar and Bathinda. The other districts from where the damage has been reported are Moga, Mansa, Amritsar and Ferozepur. The maximum loss was recorded on March 31 and April 1, when standing wheat crop on 81,112 acres was damaged.Data available with The Tribune shows that on April 5, wheat crop on 41,951 acres was damaged, while minor damage to it was reported in Bathinda (2,250 acres) on March 29. Official sources in the Revenue Department told The Tribune that directions had been issued to deputy commissioners of all affected districts to conduct the special girdawari based on the Land Record Manual.Farmers have been demanding that crop damage assessment be carried out immediately, fearing complete crop loss and fungal infection.This comes as the procurement season commenced on April 1. This unseasonal rainfall is likely to delay harvest by at least two weeks, with rainfall increasing moisture content in wheat.Randhawa seeks aid packagePatiala: Lok Sabha member Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa wrote to Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, seeking a special relief package for farmers.Randhawa also demanded relaxation in the moisture content norms for wheat procurement by the Food Corporation of India.Meanwhile, Chouhan while taking cognisance of the issue, has directed officials of the Agriculture Ministry to review the crop damage caused by hailstorms and rain.