Post News Network
Dhamnagar/Baliapal, Oct 4: Even as dwindling rain has led to drying up of large swathes of farmland in several districts, defunct irrigation systems in several areas of Bhadrak and Balasore districts have added to the worries of farmers.
Those under Dhamnagar block of Bhadrak demand an immediate survey of the crop damage. Farmers here face a drought-like situation even as the block has ample irrigation potential courtesy rivers like Bitarani, Kochila, Reba, Genguti and Kapali.
The block has 30 panchayats out of which nine panchayats have irrigation infrastructure while the rest is dependent on rain. Thousands of hectares of paddy in 20 panchayats were affected by deficit rain, source said.
Most of the lift irrigation points do not function while the irrigation department has not taken any step to repair them, farmers alleged.
The panchayats affected by scanty rainfall are Raipur, Palasahi, Dhusuri, Bamkura, Fatehpur, Kasimpur, Kothar, Baiyangdiha, Dalang, Karda, Sohada, Nadigan, Bhattasahi, Dobal, Anandapur and Hasanabad.
Drought situation has also emerged in many parts of Baliapal block in Balasore district. Farmers have pressed for immediate steps to run lift irrigation points to save paddy crop. Large tracts of farmlands in Kumbhari, Nikhira, Srirampur, Ghantua, Asti, Baliapal, Bishnupur, Jamakunda, Badash, Dagara and Choumukh panchayats are parched due to want of rain.
Farmers have started flaying the government for doing precious little to help them during this crisis. Those who have taken loans from banks and cooperative societies to raise paddy are now panicky that they may not be able to repay the loans.
Kushadhawaj Jena, Ramchandra Das, Madan Mohanty, Kartik Pramanik, Dillip Panda, Ganesh Dutt and Jaganth Biswal, all farmers, Saturday drew the attention of the agriculture department towards the drought conditions in the area. They demanded running of irrigation points to supply water to parched farmlands.
When contacted, engineer of the lift irrigation division Chaitanya Prasad Baske said defunct irrigation points will be repaired after they receive approval from higher authorities.
