Loss in Ernakulam district's agriculture sector pegged at 11 cr

Kochi: Rain caused widespread damage to the agriculture sector in Ernakulam district. The loss was pegged at Rs 11 crore in the natural calamities on Sunday and Monday. However, agriculture department officials said the actual loss may be far lesser than being reported. Field verification will be conducted to identify the losses and fix compensation, they added.

Officials said most crop damages were reported in Nedumbassery and Perumbavoor blocks. Banana cultivation incurred heavy losses over the two days. Ernakulam reported a loss of Rs 6 crore in the agriculture sector from April 1 to May 24 this year due to rains.

According to the first information report, crops on 1,269 hectares were affected by natural calamities, leading to a loss of Rs 6.24 crore. As per the FIR, banana cultivation suffered the biggest loss, with crops on 1,050 hectares affected by calamities. Paddy cultivators also suffered heavy losses. Rubber, nutmeg, arecanut, cocoa, pepper and vegetables were also lost due to the rain.

Nowadays, more youngsters and women's groups are coming forward to cultivate vegetables, whereas paddy has no takers in Ernakulam, authorities noted.