The devastating floods have damaged crops worth about Tk 2,000 crore in 262 upazilas of the 39 flood-hit districts, according to a preliminary estimate by the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE).
The damaged crops include rice, jute, vegetable and spices on around 4.69 lakh hectares of land, which is about 26 percent of the total cultivated crops in the affected areas.
Production of these crops will now reduce by 16.67 lakh tonnes, said the DAE estimate submitted to the agriculture ministry.
“The crop damage due to flooding will be between Tk 1,800 crore and Tk 2,000 crore. We are collecting information to prepare a final report on it,” Dr Shahidul Islam, director of DAE field service wing, told The Daily Star yesterday.
In such a situation, the government has initiated a Tk 65 crore post-flood rehabilitation programme to rehabilitate the marginal farmers in the affected districts.
The government has already released Tk 30 crore for the programme that will cover seven lakh small and marginal farmers.
Agriculture Adviser Dr CS Karim at a meeting with the DAE officials yesterday directed them to expedite implementation of the rehabilitation programme, sources said.
“Late variety aman rice seedlings and seeds of dry season crops will be distributed among the farmers under this programme. Seedlings of different types of seasonal rice have been raised on 203.25 hectares to be distributed soon for transplantation. List of beneficiaries of the programme has already been made,” a DAE senior official said on condition of anonymity.
The DAE has also initiated measures to motivate other farmers to prepare seedbeds using their preserved seeds and exchange seeds with interested farmers. It is also giving post-flood farming guidelines and conducting campaigns for following those.
These steps are intended to assist farmers to increase productivity using area-specific appropriate agricultural technologies.
The DAE’s control rooms at central, district and upazila levels are working to prepare a complete document on flood damage in the country. It is also tying to update and popularise the post-flood guidelines for farmers.
Aman crop — both broadcast and transplanted — is the worst hit in the current floods. This major crop on 2.50 lakh hectares has been damaged, causing a loss of around Tk 1,000 crore as, the DAE assessed.
Vegetables worth Tk 628 crore have been damaged on 52,347 hectares.
The DAE fears crop damage might go up if flood situation in some districts deteriorates again.
Meanwhile, the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre yesterday said the flood situation could deteriorate slightly in some districts in the wake of a fresh spell of rainstorm under the impact of the latest depression in a series over the Bay.
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