Informing about an artificial flood that has been occurring at the paddy fields from Yaral Loukol to Naharup Loukol of Imphal East, ‘The Protection Committee of Yaral to Gurupat Loukol, Top Kshetri, Imphal East’ has appealed to authority concerned to take up appropriate measures to save the paddy fields which is around 3,884 Sangam (a local measuring unit).
A release stated that taking up various activities in and around the said paddy sites has created artificial flood every year. Such a disaster has led to damage of large crops which are cultivated by locals as their main source of income, it said.
The activities taken up at the paddy fields may be useful to a few people but many farmers may end up in poverty, the release stated. Hence, the state government should take up necessary steps to preserve the paddy fields which is considered as “one of the biggest paddy fields in Imphal East,” it added.
Concerning the activities that affect the said areas, it stated that under the initiative of the directorate of Environment and Climate Change, Yaral Loukol is being converted into a wetland. This has led to blocking of many canals which pass the paddy land. Besides, many places which come under Yaral Loukol have been dug out of the land to form a ring-band, the release said.
Such activities have made the areas inundated with water all the time even in small amounts of rainfall, it further said while adding that inundation of water has become the major factor for destroying the paddy which they cultivated.
The release alleged that Yaral Loukol is being converted into a fish farm contrary to what the directorate has claimed. This may become beneficial to few but it will cut off the main source of income for farmers whose main source of income comes from cultivation, the release said.
On the other hand, the construction of a multipurpose dam by the department of Minor Irrigation at Naharup Loukol is the major factor behind the destruction of the paddy field, it added.
The release said that the construction was also done against the norm as it is being constructed six feet above water level.
It said that the arable land of Manipur is around 1.95 lakhs. Despite having this, the production of rice is not sufficient and still importing around half of its requirement from other states. As such, destroying paddy land is highly condemnable. The state government should take appropriate measures at earliest.
