Cyclone Burevi: Crop inundation woes continue for farmers in Nagapattinam

NAGAPATTINAM: Due to Cyclone Burevi, the acreage of paddy crops under inundation in Nagapattinam has risen above 54,000 hectares or over 40 per cent of the 1,30,000 hectares under cultivation in the district. The constant downpours, flow of water downstream and obstructions in draining have contributed to the inundation. 

"We are unable to drain the water from the fields. The water from upper riparian districts keeps coming towards our villages. The channels are breaking everywhere, even overwhelming the sandbags. Our crops have either been washed away or have decayed," said R Pakkiri, a farmer from Therku Panaiyur village in Kilvelur block.

Most of the older Samba crops, cultivated in August and September, have survived while much of the younger Thaladi crops, cultivated in October and November, are under the water. The agriculture department had declared zero crop loss in the aftermath of Cyclone Nivar. 

"The upstream dams, such as Mettur, Upper Anaicut and Grand Anaicut, were not opened ahead of the cyclone. The waterways were almost dry before the cyclone. It is just rainwater which flooded delta districts. The districts such as Thanjavur and Tiruvarur, which are upstream of Cauvery and Vennar, released water towards the downstream tail-end districts of Nagapattinam and Mayiladuthurai," explained an engineer from the PWD-WRO.

Kollidam and Sirkazhi blocks are the worst affected, with over 8,000 hectares and 7,000 hectares respectively under water. "The waters are not draining as fast as expected as there is a lack of good draining infrastructure in our villages. A lot of concrete culverts should have been constructed instead of relying on pipes to drain the water. There are a lot of invasive growths in drain channels," said V Ramasamy, a farmer from Mohanur in Kilvelur block.

A team of senior officials has inspected the fields across Nagapattinam revenue division blocks.  The officials told The New Indian Express that the farmers would get both crop insurance and disaster management compensation. "We will begin the area-wise process for compensation this week. The government will decide the scale of compensation. The farmers could get a reasonable percentage as a relief for the loss that they have faced," said P Sankaralingam, additional director, Agriculture.