The agriculture sector in the State has suffered losses to the tune of ₹200 crore in the present rain fury, Agriculture Minister P. Prasad has said.
Speaking to reporters here on Tuesday, Mr. Prasad said the State Government would seek a special agriculture package from the Centre.
“The estimated ₹200-crore loss is based on a preliminary assessment. Officials have been asked to complete the assessment and submit detailed reports soon. The loss in Kuttanad alone is estimated at ₹18 crore. The region has witnessed bund breaches at a number of places. The rain and waterlogging have destroyed harvest-ready paddy in large tracts,” the Minister said.
A total of 60,519 farmers lost standing crops in 11,195 hectares, according to a preliminary report prepared by the Department of Agriculture.
Kottayam registered the worst crop loss of ₹36.51 crore across 1,936 hectares with 7,094 farmers affected. In Thrissur district, the crop loss is estimated at ₹24.84 crore, as 5,936 farmers lost crops in 1,635 hectares while in Kollam, a total of 5,905 farmers lost crops in 345 hectares, running up a loss of ₹22 crore.
In Palakkad, 2,982 farmers incurred a loss of ₹19.9 crore as the rains ravaged more than 1,322 hectares of farmland and in Ernakulam, a total of 5,991 farmers lost crops worth ₹18.85 crore in 1,824 hectares.
Mr. Prasad visited flood-hit areas in Kuttanad and took stock of the situation. He said the people living in places prone to flooding had been shifted to relief camps.
(With inputs from Thiruvananthapuram bureau)
