Kerala - Alappuzha

Pests wreak havoc in Kuttanad fields

By Our Staff Reporter

ALAPPUZHA, FEB. 3. The Brown Plant Hopper pest has wreaked havoc in the paddy fields of Kuttanad. The attack is particularly severe in the paddy fields of Neelamperoor, Kavalam, Ramankary and Takazhy areas.

As per an estimate prepared by the Agriculture Department, paddy farmers of Kuttanad have suffered losses of Rs. 5 crores in the current pest attack. According to the estimate, the paddy plants of 5,000 acres in Kuttanad have been completely destroyed in the pest attack while cultivation in 10,000 acres has been partially damaged.

According to officials of the Agriculture Department, the pest attack was aggravated by the sudden change in climate in Kuttanad. The Alappuzha principal agricultural officer visited the spot to gather first-hand information on the loss suffered by farmers. He interacted with the farmers of Kuttanad and agricultural officers here.

The farmers have demanded that the State Government form a special fund to help those who had suffered losses due to the pest attack. They pointed out the pest attack had completely destroyed the morale of farmers who had earlier suffered loss from the intrusion of salt water into their fields.

The farmers pointed out that the water level in paddy fields in Kuttanad was low at present. This had adversely affected paddy cultivation, they said. The intrusion of salt water into the paddy fields of Kuttanad when the tsunami waves struck through the damaged shutters of the Thottappally spillway had also resulted in conditions favourable for pests, they said.

Meanwhile, it is pointed out that the farmers are using pesticides on a large scale to prevent the spread of attack into the paddy fields that have not been affected by the attack. The office-bearers of various Padasekhara Committees in Kuttanad have demanded that the Government send a special team to assess the loss suffered by the farmers.

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