- 60,503 acres of paddy damaged by drought
While a scorching drought has caused thousands of acres of crop loss over the last few months, the prevailing rains have caused damage to paddy cultivations that were about to be harvested in certain areas, the Ministry of Agriculture, stated.
It is learnt that the Ministry has instructed the Agrarian and Agricultural Insurance Board (AAIB) to be watchful of increasing rainfall in some regions where paddy fields are almost ready to be harvested.
According to the Ministry, a total of 60,503 acres of paddy and other crop cultivations belonging to 55,951 farmers islandwide have been damaged due to drought.
The highest extent of crop damage, 26,644 acres belonging to 32,144 farmers, is from the Kurunegala District, while the second highest damage, 14,667 acres belonging to 5,867 farmers, is from the Udawalawe Zone. In addition, 4,479 acres of cultivation in Hambantota, 1,719 acres in Ratnapura, 1,496 acres in Matale, and 1,256 acres in Polonnaruwa have been damaged due to drought.
Against this backdrop, the subject Minister Mahinda Amaraweera has instructed the AAIB to pay attention to paddy cultivations in certain areas, particularly those in the Hambantota District, being affected due to prevailing rains.
The Ministry's Media Director Dharma Wanninayake, however, opined that the rains may cause some damage to the crops but would not affect the harvest significantly. Nevertheless, the AAIB is to monitor the rainfall and advise on taking prompt action if necessary.
Meanwhile, it was reported last week that more than 50,000 farmers whose crops had been damaged due to drought were to receive the relevant compensation sums before the commencement of the Maha season. While damage caused to six types of crops – including paddy, maize, chilli, potato, big onion, and soybean – would be compensated, the Ministry stated that there was no possibility of compensating damage caused to crops such as cinnamon, rubber, tea, pepper, and coconut as they do not come under the purview of the Agriculture Ministry.