Release of water from the Nanda Lake has flooded paddy fields in Bansai-Curchorem.
SANGUEM
The farming community of Bansai-Curchorem is upset over the sudden release of water from the Nanda Lake in Curchorem, claiming that it has severely impacted their paddy fields which were nearing harvest.
Farmers stated that heavy rainfall over the past two days caused Nanda Lake to reach full storage capacity, prompting authorities to open its gates and release excess water. Consequently, all paddy fields situated downstream of Nanda Lake were inundated.
The affected farmers stated that they had made multiple appeals to authorities to refrain from releasing the water, warning of the potential harm to their downstream paddy fields.
Despite these requests, they said authorities proceeded with the release of water, leading to widespread flooding of paddy fields.
Farmers assert that their crops were at a crucial harvesting stage, and the current flooding will significantly damage the grains, leading to substantial financial losses for them.
On receiving the information, zonal agricultural officers from the Quepem ZAO visited the affected paddy fields and assured farmers that they would submit a report to higher authorities to facilitate compensation.