Floodwater started entering Baram and Darakhai Haors in Derai and Jagannathpur upazilas of Sunamganj on Thursday overflowing the flood protection embankment along Kalni River, causing worry to local farmers.
Following the authority’s instruction farmers of Sunamganj haor region have started harvesting half-ripe paddy to reduce losses.
Water overflowed from Kalni River through the middle part of Chandipur-Khejaura since Thursday morning, said Mahmudur Rahman, upazila nirbahi officer of Dirai upazila.
About four thousand hectares of land were cultivated in this haor.
According to the locals, 60 per cent of the paddy in the haor has been harvested. If flooding in haor continues, the rest of the paddy will go under water.
Bimal Chandra Som, deputy director of the district Agricultural Extension Department, said another crops on 1,000 hectares of land in Baram Haor has not been harvested yet.
However, most of the crops of Pathar Haor have been reaped. The harvesting of Boro paddy is still continuing in these two haors, the official added.
State minister for water resources Zahid Faruk on Thursday visited flood-hit Shantiganj, Jagannathpur and Derai upazilas in Sunamganj when he asked the authorities concerned to take necessary actions to help the affected farmers.
‘From March 30 water from upstream hills rushed down in the first phase of the flood. Officials and staffs of Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) and other workers are giving all-out effort to protect the damaged dams since then,’ he said while talking to journalists there.
Zahid said,’ In the next Boro season, the affected farmers will be given free seeds and fertilizers along with various food aids including Vulnerable Group Feeding.’
The government is providing 70 per cent subsidy to the farmers in the haor area to ease their burden of production cost, he added.
‘Upstream water running down hills following torrential rain in Meghalaya and Cherrapunji of India triggered the second phase of flash floods.
On Sunday night, water entered Huramandira Haor in Derai upazila damaging 200 hectares of 1,000 hectares of cropland in the area, he added.
According to the Department of Agricultural Extension a total of 5,660 hectares in 17 small and large haors, beels got inundated by flash floods so far.
Source - https://www.newagebd.net
