Dana whiplash stokes paddy, fish and veggie price rise concerns
Times of India | 26 October 2024
Kolkata: Heavy rain caused by Cyclone Dana in the state, accompanied by a surge in the sea water and strong winds, inundated fields and damaged standing paddy crop, affecting ‘Aman’ and ‘Aus’ yields before their winter harvest. These two varieties of rice contribute to around 45% of the total paddy produce in Bengal, which is the highest rice producer in the country.
Winter vegetables were also damaged in large agricultural tracts in the cyclone aftermath, triggering worries of price hike. Vegetables like cauliflower, cabbage, flat beans, tomatoes, broccoli, capsicum, French beans, okra, and eggplants were badly affected, besides the ‘Aman’ paddy. According to preliminary estimates, paddy lodging — in which stems of the crop are permanently displaced from their upright position — took place on 17,217 hectares in East Burdwan alone.
Similar situation was reported from West Midnapore, Jhargram, East Midnapore, and Hooghly. Pradip Mazumdar, the panchayat minister and agriculture advisor to the state, said, “It’s a huge loss. We would take four days to receive the complete data.” CM Mamata Banerjee also announced an extension of the last date for receiving crop compensation claims from Oct 31 to Nov 30. “Begin the survey a day after tomorrow (Saturday). I will instruct all principal secretaries, in charge of the seven districts, and the agriculture department so that the farmers receive crop insurance benefits. If required, provide them relief through our Karmashree project,” she said.
Banerjee stated, “We must ensure that farmers are not harmed in any way. We have to look after the interests of the farmers.” Meanwhile, the supply of winter vegetables may be delayed by another 75 days. “The farmers need to resow and wait for a longer period for the fresh produce,” Kamal De, an agriculture expert and Market Task Force member, said, adding if water remains stagnant for over two days, the root system of the crop would get rotten.
Some fisheries in East Midnapore and South 24 Parganas were washed away due to the storm surge accompanied by high tide. The loss, according to fish farms, may cross a few crores by a conservative estimate.
(Inputs from Falguni Banerjee in Hooghly, Mohammad Asif in Burdwan and Sujoy Khanra in Midnapore)