Farmers yet to recover from flood caused devastation: TKMU

By Our Correspondent

Agartala, November 3, 2024

A delegation of Tripura Khet Mazdoor Union led by former MLA Pabitra Kar met Agriculture Minister Ratan Lal Nath and sought his intervention to address the problems faced by the farmers especially in the aftermath of the devastating floods which occurred in August this year.

“The Minister has agreed to the points we have raised during the meeting. The farmers have been struggling to recover from the heavy losses they had incurred due to the devastating floods. Large stretches of croplands had been swept away by the floods. Ready to harvest vegetables and other food grains had been deluged by the flood water. In some areas silt deposition has affected fertility of the soil making the seasonal sowing further difficult,” said Kar.

According to the senior CPIM leader, 90 percent of the irrigation facilities are dysfunctional and no attention is paid to restore them. “With grave concern, we have noticed that the water pumps are out of operation. The government is yet to make any visible efforts to restore them to function. In absence of proper irrigation, the farmers will be unable to sow for the next season. As the dry season sets in there is no rain water option available for the farmers unlike the previous season. In the light of this, we have asked the minister to take necessary action. The Minister has said that irrigation doesn’t come under his purview but he would definitely take up the matter with the concerned department,” Kar added.

Kar also alleged that the minister failed to suggest any specific timeline by when the issues could be resolved and the farmers would get compensation as per the SDRF and NDRF rules. “The farmers have received the initial financial assistance that was announced by the state government. But, the compensation that they were supposed to get as per the Disaster Management Act is yet to reach them. The Minister also failed to make any specific comment on the matter. We have apprised him about the situation and urged him to take necessary steps,” he added.The leaders of the Left Affiliated Body will also meet Chief Minister Dr Manik Saha. “We have sought his time for the meeting,” Kar pointed out.