Farmers in distress : 212 hectares of paddy fields submerged in Gaibandha
Sarkar Shahadat Hossain, Gaibandha
In Gaibandha, continuous rainfall over the past few days has submerged 212 hectares of paddy fields across the district. Most of the affected crops were nearly ready for harvest, raising concerns of significant losses. At the same time, farmers are facing a dual crisis due to a shortage of labor and doubled wage rates.
According to the Department of Agricultural Extension, the submerged areas include 22 hectares in Sadar, 90 hectares in Sundarganj, 17 hectares in Sadullapur, 20 hectares in Palashbari, 2 hectares in Gobindaganj, 45 hectares in Fulchhari, and 16 hectares in Saghata.
Approximately 1,280 farmers have been affected.
Agriculture officials and stakeholders said that unusually heavy rainfall during the Bengali month of Boishakh has caused serious damage to Boro paddy cultivation this season. Rising production costs, combined with natural disasters, have further deepened the financial hardship of farmers.
Field visits to several areas in Sadar and Saghata upazilas revealed that farmers are harvesting paddy while standing in knee-deep water. Many are using makeshift rafts (“houn”) to transport bundles of paddy from the fields to the roadside. Due to labor shortages, women and even teenagers have joined the harvesting work.
Nur Alam, a farmer from Jharaborsha village in Saghata, said, “Paddy from about 15 to 18 bighas of land has been submerged. It is impossible to bring the harvest without using rafts.” Rashida Begum from the same village said they are harvesting the crops themselves due to the lack of workers.
Meanwhile, immature paddy plants have been flattened by strong winds, increasing the risk of further losses. Farmers fear that if the crops are not harvested in time, they will rot and be completely destroyed.
In the current Boro season, paddy has been cultivated on 129,020 hectares of land in the district, with a production target of 596,072 metric tons.
