Kolkata, Oct 9 The West Bengal government has initiated special registration camps for flood-affected farmers across north Bengal for their speedy enrolment in the state's crop insurance scheme following the recent natural disasters, state government sources confirmed on Thursday.
State agriculture department officials are holding talks with the flood-affected farmers to expedite the registration process for the insurance cover, according to a senior source in the administration.
According to government sources, heavy and continuous rainfall caused rivers to overflow, leading to widespread flooding across several areas in Jalpaiguri, Darjeeling, Cooch Behar, and Alipurduar districts of north Bengal.
There are growing concerns among the farmers’ community about extensive crop damage in these regions. Although the exact extent of the loss is yet to be ascertained, initial surveys suggest that significant damage to vegetables and major crops, particularly paddy and maize in these places.
According to government reports, as many as 18,452 hectares of agricultural land have been submerged due to flooding so far. Jalpaiguri district has been the worst affected, with around 13,953 hectares submerged. In Alipurduar, around 3,495 hectares of farmland are flooded, while Darjeeling and Cooch Behar have seen 582 hectares and 422 hectares submerged, respectively.
Following the instructions of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, State Panchayat Minister Pradip Majumdar visited the flood-hit areas of north Bengal on Wednesday to assess the situation.
He toured several affected areas to evaluate the extent of the damage and will submit a detailed report on agricultural losses to the Chief Minister.
Additionally, the Agricultural Marketing Department has set up 29 extra Sufal Bangla stalls to ensure that residents can access vegetables at fair prices in the coming days.
Various food items, including 150 quintals of potatoes, have been dispatched from multiple Sufal Bangla centres to the relief camps in the flood-affected regions, said a government official.
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