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Kolkata, Oct 9 (IANS) The West Bengal government has started special registration camps for flood-affected farmers across North Bengal for early enrollment in the state crop insurance scheme following the recent natural disasters, state government sources confirmed on Thursday.
According to a senior source in the administration, state agriculture department officials are in talks with flood-affected farmers to speed up the registration process for insurance cover.
According to government sources, rivers are in spate due to heavy and incessant rains, causing widespread flooding in many areas of Jalpaiguri, Darjeeling, Cooch Behar and Alipurduar districts of North Bengal.
There are growing concerns among the farming community about widespread crop damage in these areas. Although the exact extent of damage is not yet known, initial surveys suggest that vegetables and major crops, especially paddy and maize, have been significantly damaged in these locations.
According to government reports, 18,452 hectares of agricultural land has so far been submerged due to floods. Jalpaiguri district has been worst affected, where about 13,953 hectares of land has been submerged. In Alipurduar, about 3,495 hectares of agricultural land has been submerged in floods, while in Darjeeling and Cooch Behar, 582 hectares and 422 hectares of land have been submerged respectively.
Following instructions from Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, state Panchayat Minister Pradeep Majumdar visited the flood-affected areas of North Bengal on Wednesday to assess the situation.
He visited several affected areas to assess the extent of damage and will submit a detailed report on agricultural losses to the Chief Minister.
Additionally, the Agriculture Marketing Department has set up 29 additional Sufal Bangla stalls to ensure that residents can get vegetables at reasonable prices in the coming days.
Various food items, including 150 quintals of potatoes, have been sent from several Suphal Bangla centers to relief camps in flood-affected areas, a government official said.
–IANS
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