Continuous rain has submerged farmlands in Odisha’s Jagatsinghpur district, with residents blaming encroached and poorly maintained drains for worsening waterlogging that has damaged paddy nurseries and raised fears of major crop losses.
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Paddy farmer Surendra Swain from Jagatsinghpur Photograph: (OTV)
Continuous rainfall severely affected agricultural activities in Odisha’s Jagatsinghpur district on Sunday, leaving farmers worried over extensive damage to paddy nurseries. Residents have alleged that the district’s drainage network has become ineffective due to encroachments, lack of regular desilting, and poor maintenance.
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As a result, excess rainwater is unable to flow out through the designated channels, worsening waterlogging in agricultural areas. Farmers have urged the authorities to take immediate steps to clear blocked drains and improve drainage infrastructure to prevent further losses.
However, no official response has been received from the district administration regarding the allegations or the measures being taken to address the situation.
Large stretches of farmland remain submerged as rainwater has failed to drain out, causing paddy seedlings in several fields to be washed away. Farmers fear significant crop losses if the situation persists.
“I had bought paddy seeds on credit at Rs 60 per kilogram. But it has been raining for four to five days now. With waist-deep water in the field, there is no hope of any harvest. Where will I get the money to do this again? Nothing can be done now. The drain that is there is not draining the water. It has not been cleaned for two to three years, so the water is not clearing out,” a local farmer, Bharat Mani, said.
“The paddy crop has got submerged; I had sown around 18 to 20 ‘mana’ (a unit of land). Everything is ruined and destroyed. There is waist-deep water. The paddy is gone. How will my children survive? I eke out my living from sharecropping. I have no other option left. What will I do now?” another farmer, Surendra Swain, questioned.
Worth mentioning, the well-marked low-pressure area over the northwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining areas of the North Odisha-West Bengal coasts concentrated into a Depression and lay centred today at 08.30 hrs IST over the same region.
It is moving west-northwest and is likely to cross the Odisha coast between Chandbali and Digha near Balasore within the next 24 hours. It is currently centred about 50 km south-southeast of Balasore, 60 km northeast of Chandbali.
Reported By: Manas Kanungo