Agriculture Minister V.S. Sunil Kumar on Wednesday directed authorities concerned and padasekhara samithis to immediately reconstruct the breached outer bunds of paddy polders in Kuttanad.
He was chairing a meeting via videoconferencing. Mr. Kumar said that reconstruction of the bunds should be done by respective padasekhara samithis .
“Losses suffered by farmers should be determined immediately. Drones can be used to ascertain the extent of crop loss. The help of other departments should be sought to drain out floodwater and remove silt from paddy fields,” the Minister said.
Kuttanad witnessed a series of bund breaches in recent days following heavy downpour and an increase in the flow of water from the eastern side. According to officials, 4,322.94 hectares of paddy fields remain submerged. Outer bunds of 37 paddy polders were breached and another 50 bunds overflowed.
Though the flood situation improved considerably in the district, parts of Kuttanad still remain submerged. A total of 7,423 people from 2,541 families are staying in 110 relief camps opened in different parts of the district as on Wednesday evening. Besides, the district administration has opened 612 gruel centres in the district including 577 in Kuttanad.
