Jaffna paddy farmers expect better yields
by Mohammed NAALIR
Over 10,520 hectares of land in Jaffna have come under the plough
this year, Jaffna Agriculture Department sources said.
At a time paddy lands across the country have been destroyed by
floods, Jaffna farmers expect their paddy harvest to increase to more
than 38,600 metric tons compared to last year's harvest of 12,000 metric
tons, the sources said.
A large extent of paddy lands, abandoned due to landmines and the
displacement of farmers along with the availability of lands following
the removal of high security zones will also be utilised in the North
this year, according to the Jaffna Agriculture Department. The
construction of concrete dams in certain places to prevent salt water
entering paddy lands and the uninterrupted supply of the fertiliser
subsidy have also attributed to the increase of the paddy harvest,
sources said.
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