Farmers protest crop loss in floods

The farmers of three villages whose standing basmati crop in as many as 300 acres has been inundated again in the last two months, lodged a strong protest on Thursday and said that they would meet the Deputy Commissioner on Friday demanding compensation for the loss incurred.

Nachhattar Singh, district president of the Kirti Kisan Union, while protesting at the site of the damaged crops, said that the rainwater of many villages in the surrounding area often accumulates in the fields of these villages.

The farmer leader said that the paddy crop of the affected farmers that was damaged by rain two months back has again been inundated though they had planted basmati after that.

The farmer leader said that those affected have been at the mercy of nature for the last many decades. They had, in fact, prepared a proposal to drain rainwater to the nearby drain. The proposal was forwarded to the state government by the drainage department for approval.

He said that the proposal has not been implemented as of yet and as a result, the farmers were suffering heavy loss, not once but sometimes twice a year. Nachhatar Singh said that the farmers of the affected Soorwind, Bhaini Gurmukh Singh and Boor Chand villages, Gurbakhash Singh, Kashmir Singh, Swarn Singh, Gurchet Singh Shah, Surjit Singh Nambardar, former Sarpanch Satnam Singh, Sukhdev Singh Budchand and others would meet the Deputy Commissioner on Friday at his office and seek compensation.

The affected farmers lodged a strong protest on Thursday and stressed on finding a permanent solution to the problem of draining out rainwater to the nearby drain.