Drought Destroys Thousands of Hectares of Rice Crops in West Java
2 June 2015 21:54 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Thousands of hectares of rice crops across five districts in Subang regency, West Java is suffering from drought, as local springs in the area have dried up in recent months—forcing scores of farmers in the area to abandon the second planting season.
According to Tempo's observation in the village of Cihambulu in Pabuaran district, rice crops aged between 14-30 days have begun to wither. "We've tried our best to water the crops with water from our well, but it won't help much," said Kusnadi, a local farmer. "We could only hope for the best."
Another local farmer, Oman, said that he is fighting a losing battle to save his 20-day-old crops. "I've deployed two water pumps to water my field," he said. "It took 24 hours to properly irrigate my field, which measures at two hectares."
That said, his efforts cost him quite dearly. He has had to spend Rp3.5 million for two 2-inch water pumps, and an additional Rp1 million to bore two 35-meter-deep holes for the units. Oman will have to spend a further Rp5 million to maintain and fertilize the crops.
As such, Oman believes that he would not even meet the break-even point when harvest time comes. "All I want is for my crops to survive," he said.
Cihambulu's village chief, Hasan Abdul Munir, said that there were at least 210 hectares of fields in his area that are at risk of withering due to the drought. "Local farmers have begun to lose hope," he said.
Similar conditions have been reported by farmers in the districts of Dawuan, Cipeundeuy, Pagaden, West Pagaden, and Cikaum, where the drought have been compounded by the broken irrigation channels that have yet to be repaired. "The Leuwi Nangka Dam is still out of order, as such, we have no other sources of water to irrigate our crops," said Husaeni, a farmer from West Pagaden district.
The head of Subang regency's Agricultural Resources Agency, Hendrawan, has confirmed that thousands of hectares of paddy fields have begun to be adversely affected by the drought. "The majority of the fields affected are located in areas that are highly dependent on precipitation for irrigation," he said.
NANANG SUTISNA
