Agriculture suffered heavy losses in Gujarat due to Tauktae cyclone

A lot of damage to crops reported from across the state after cyclone Tauktae flattened mango orchards and banana plantations and coconut palms.

Gandhinagar: The cyclone Tauktae, which has ravaged the Gujarat coast for two days beginning May 17, has left behind a trail of destruction.

After conducting an aerial survey of the devastated areas, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an aid of Rs 1,000 crore to the state.

According to official figure, as many as 79 people lost lives in the cyclone. Electricity got snapped in 5,400 villages. The farm sector has suffered losses of millions of rupees.

According to the agriculture department, in Morbi district, rabi crop was cultivated on 10,792 hectares of which Urad was sown on 1,015 hectares, groundnut on 1,067, sesame and vegetables on 2,479 hectares.

These crops have suffered heavy losses. Village level workers of the revenue and agriculture departments are currently carrying out a survey to assess the damage caused to the crops by the cyclone.

Moong has begun to sprout in farms

Crops of Bajra, sesame, moong cultivated in Kamalpura village of Vadodara’s Savli taluka have suffered heavy losses. In many of the farms, moong sown has already sprouted because of heavy rains. The same condition prevails in other villages like Rampura, Dhantej, Wadia and Vasanpura. Farmers are expecting the chief minister to announce a compensation package for them.

Crops on 3,000 hectares destroyed

Standing crops in Mahua taluka of the Surat district have suffered widespread losses. The paddy crop in villages of the taluka has suffered on account of the cyclone. According to information, various crops were cultivated on over 4,000 hectares of land of which crops of vegetables, fruits and cereals on 3,000 hectares have been destroyed according to the preliminary survey. The government will decide the quantum of compensation to the farmers after completing a survey.

Kesar mangoes of Vanthali have suffered heavy loss

Gir region is known for its orchards of mangoes, especially the famous Kesar variety. Cyclone has caused widespread damage to the crop of mangoes in the region and the growers have been compelled to sell mangoes at a distressed price.

Growers of Kesar mango have suffered loss of Rs 100 crore

According to a rough estimate, the owners of mango orchards in the Gir region are estimated to have lost mangoes worth over Rs 100 crore. The region had never seen such a huge loss in its recent past.

Kutch district too is known for cultivating mangoes, dates and pomegranate. As the cyclone diverted and did not directly hit the district, only 25 per cent of the fruits grown in the coastal region of the district got adversely affected. The highspeed winds accompanying the cyclone caused the mangoes to drop off the trees before they could be harvested. Agriculture department officials have begun a survey to assess the damage caused by the cyclone.