200 hectares of land flooded in Brahmanbaria, farmers harvest raw paddy

Floodwater from upstream has inundated at least 200 hectares of farming land in Brahmanbaria’s Nasirnagar, compelling farmers to harvest half-ripened paddy.

Most of the farming lands in six unions - Sadar, Bhaulakut, Burishwar, Goalnagar, Purbabhag - went underwater as the water level rose for three straight days, reports bdnews24.com. 

“Upstream water damaged around 200 hectares of land near the Titas, Bolobhadro and Langhar rivers,” said Brahmanbaria Department of Agricultural Extension Deputy Director Rabiul Haque Majumdar.

“But haor land further upstream is still safe. The haors will be severely damaged if the water level rises further.”

Boro paddy has been cultivated on 32,000 hectares of haor wetland this year and, as of Tuesday, farmers harvested paddy from 9,310 hectares of land, equivalent to 29 percent of the total land, according to the agriculture department.

Farmers say they can harvest the paddy from all of the remaining farmland if they get eight to ten days.

The local rivers have risen more than two feet in three days, said farmer Rahis Mia in Bhaulakut village. “Crops were damaged in hailstorms a few days ago. Now the upstream water from Sunamganj has flooded all the paddy,” he said.

The entire district has been experiencing heavy rain since Wednesday morning, adding to the anxiety of farmers who still have unharvested crops.

Farmer Ali Newaz from Medir Haor Par owns a small piece of land in the haor area. Almost all of that land has been inundated, he said. Newaz harvested some half-ripened paddy on Tuesday.

“The damage is major for me. I’m facing a huge loss.”

Four other farmers said they took loans to cultivate paddy and are now worried about repayment.

Some of the land beside the rivers and lakes was inundated by upstream water, but the total size could be smaller than 200 hectares, said Abu Sayeed Tareque, an officer in Nasirnagar Upazila Department of Agricultural Extension.

He said the authorities are working to determine the extent of the inundated land and making a list of farmers impacted by it.

As of Tuesday, the water level of rivers in Brahmanbaria had risen 1.83 metres, said Ranjan Kumar Das, executive engineer of Brahmanbaria Water Development Board. The water level dropped 5 cm on Wednesday, but may rise again due to the ongoing rain, he said.