BALANGIR FARMERS TORCH DAMAGED CROPS Saturday, 04 November 2017 | PNS | BALANGIR

BALANGIR FARMERS TORCH DAMAGED CROPS

Saturday, 04 November 2017 | PNS | BALANGIR / JHARSUGUDA/ BRAHMAPUR | in Bhubaneswar

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Close on the heels of farmers of several other parts of the State torching their paddy crops due to damage caused by pest attack, farmers in Balangir district also burnt their paddy crop due to damage.

According to reports, a farmer of Khapraphol in Balangir, Brundaban Barik, on Thursday set fire to his paddy crops after it was

affected due to Chakada or Brown Plant Hopper (BPH) pest attack.

Barik has a total of eight acres of land, out of which three acres are having irrigation facility and rest five acres are non-irrigated.

He had appraised the district administration about his problems. Agriculture Department officials had advised him to spray insecticide.

But although the crop condition was good, the unseasonal rainfall, hot and humid conditions accelerated the pest attack, sources said.

Normally, the BPH pest occurs in the summer paddy crop. But the rainfall after Durga Puja and hot and humid conditions led to BPH pest attack in the Kharif paddy crop. Due to this pest attack at the roots of plants, the nutrition and other supplies to the plants are cut off, resulting in death of the plants, said Balangir Deputy Director of Agriculture Sridhar Das.

Asked to comment on substandard insecticide being sold in the market and provided to farmers, Das said, “We have collected samples of the insecticide and sent them to the State laboratory for test.”

“We have got reports of the pest attack from Gudvella, Loisingha and Khapraphol blocks and a report is being prepared for submission to the Government, he added.

In Jharsuguda district, farmers in Siriapalli village set fire to their crops after attack by pests. Reports said more than 50 farmers set their damaged crops ablaze on Friday.

Besides, in Rampa village of Chikiti block of Ganjam district, a farmer set on fire his damaged crops