Assagao: Farmers in Sangolda are a disappointed lot as first it was the floods that inundated and destroyed their paddy fields and now voracious rodents have raided their crop causing extensive damage.
Worried ryots feel that the rodents if left unchecked would wreak havoc to their remaining crops and requested the agriculture department to extend a helping hand to curb the infestation at the earliest.
Farmers here they stare at a bleak future this year as the rains played spoilt sport and now it’s the rodents
Initially some farmers felt that it was the locusts were attacking their crops as the paddy saplings are just being cut off at the stem but later it became confirmed that it was rodent attack.
Farmers Mohan Rama Salgaocar, Vasudha Somji, Bunu Tandel , Rajendra Kerkar, Uday Mandrekar, and many others in Sangolda said that they are going through a nightmare to see their fields have been attacked by rodents causing large-scale damage and stare at an uncertain future on the outcome.
“I’m helpless as I see my crop getting attacked by rodents and I can do nothing about it said” Mohan Salgaocar.|
Another resident Uday Mandrekar said that he had spent ten days to ward off pigeons, peacocks and sparrows. “Then the rain brought in pain and when I transplanted my field again, I have new visitors (rodent) doing the damage that I had never seen in my life,” said Mandrekar.
“We are just running from pillar to post to submit our forms to the ZAO office to seek compensation for our damaged fields. I transplanted my field twice said only to see it being destroyed by rodents,” said Jayanti another farmer.
Deepu Shirodkar another farmer from Morod stated that she was fed up this year. “ Thousands of pigeons have given us endless trouble and we had to guard our crops from dawn to dusk to ward off the birds. Then the floods did the destruction and now the rodents have invaded the fields. They attack the crops at nights and we can do nothing,” wailed Shirodkar.
Farmers however said that when they brought it to the notice of the Zonal Agricultural Office at Mapusa, a team was immediately sent to the area to find a solution to the issue.
ZAO Sampatti Dhargalkar when contacted said that on being informed about the issue she immediately contacted the Assistant Plant Protection Officer Nilesh Sasthe who was monitoring the situation and had suggested rat kill ‘ bromodiolone’ as a solution.
“All burrows need to be located and closed and those which are being opened need to be treated with bromodiolone cakes which need to be kept at the mouth of the burrows . This should help in bringing about some solution, said Dhargalkar and added that the department was trying every possible way to help the ryots in Sangolda in overcoming this problem.
“I’m really feeling sorry for the farmers. I will write to the Forest Department to find out if there was another other way to trap the rats,” said the ZAO.
Another villager also stated that the rats have multiplied as lots of houses have cropped up in the fields.
Sangolda villagers now say that the Forest Department too should step in to ward of the pigeons, peacocks and rodents damaging their crops lest they be forced to abandon farming in the village.