Staff Reporter :
Boro paddy grown in the Madaidanga beel of Roumari upazila in Kurigram district has been flooded by water due to continuous rain. The paddy was planted in this beel covering an area of more than one thousand hectares. As a result, thousands of farmers have been worried about cutting paddy and taking to home. The farmers urged the concerned departments of the government to take permanent and sustainable measures for removing water from the beel.
According to our District correspondent, hundreds of bighas of semi-ripe boro paddy have been submerged in eight unions of Kurigram Sadar upazila in the last three days of rains.
Madaidanga Bill covers a large area of Dantbhanga and Shaulmari Union. The beel is oriented of single crop. About one and a half thousand farmers have more than one thousand hectares of land there. Of this, 300 hectares of land cover water all year round. Boro is cultivated in the remaining area of more than 700 hectares. However, due to lack of drainage facilities, the paddy goes under water in light rains.
Anisur Rahman, a farmer from Jhagrachar village in Dantbhanga union, said they have 10 bighas of land in the beel. Due to waterlogging, they cannot cultivate other crops except boro paddy. When it rains again, many times they can’t take the paddy home, the land is ruined by water.
Rezaul Karim, chairman of Dantbhanga Union, said, “The land of Beel has remained uncultivated due to waterlogging for long long years as there is no drainage system.” The matter has been reported to the Upazila Agriculture Officer. He said he would take action after inspecting the site.
Roumari Upazila Agriculture Officer Kaiyum Chowdhury said, ‘The bill is oriented of single crop. Farmers also suffered due to waterlogging. If we can make arrangements for drainage of water from the beel, it will be possible to plant boro and aman in both seasons.
‘ Asked about the initiative to drain the water, he said, “This work is not done by our office,
but by the Irrigation and Rehabilitation Committee of the Upazila Parishad.” However, it is better to take a special project for the arranging drainage system of that bill. The matter will be taken up with the local administration at the next monthly meeting.
