Hooghly, 24 February (H.S.)

The current situation of the farmers of Khanakul is very worrying. The broken embankments of the river, the release of water by DVC, and untimely rains—all these events happened simultaneously, which put the area in trouble. The potato crop, which was on the verge of ripening, is now submerged in water. Farmers said that if the irrigation department had repaired the embankments in time, this devastation could have been averted. Farmers said that the condition of the embankments has remained the same since the flood of the year 2024.

Potato cultivation in Balaichak, Navinchak and Chaubispur areas has suffered heavy losses. This flood, which started on Sunday morning, was further aggravated by the broken embankments of the Mundeshwari and Damodar rivers. Farmers alleged that the water released for Boro rice cultivation entered their potato crop, as the broken embankments could not stop it. If they had received information earlier, perhaps they could have saved some loss by harvesting the crop. But this did not happen. Now they are worried about the waterlogged crop rotting, which can further weaken their financial condition.

The farmers are making efforts. They are struggling to drain out water from the fields. Farmers like Srikant Shaw said that the situation has gone out of control due to the sudden release of water and the breaking of the embankments. They demand that the government should help immediately, otherwise they will have to take to the streets. This anger is also related to the damage caused by last year's floods and rains, even after which no concrete steps were taken.

BDO Madhumita Ghosh said that there is a plan to buy potatoes through Sufal Bangla, and tenders have also been issued for the repair of the embankments. But the question remains the same, why have the embankments not been repaired even after eight-nine months? If this delay is not administrative negligence, then what is it? The silence and laxity of the irrigation department has created this crisis for the farmers.

Meanwhile, politics has also heated up. BJP's Umesh Adhikari says that Trinamool creates obstacles in development, which stops the progress of the area. On the other hand, tension is increasing among the farmers, and police has also had to be deployed to control the situation.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey