Tenant farmers stare at an uncertain future as thousands of paddy fields, which are due to be harvested, are now submerged under water.
A farmer in Tenali in the submerged paddy fields. (Supplied)
Severe cyclonic storm Michuang, which made landfall close to Bapatla in the south Andhra Pradesh coast on the morning of Tuesday, 5 December, has affected at least eight districts with heavy rainfall and high tides, stated a release from the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
It has reportedly resulted in the deaths of at least six civilians and one police officer.
Three days later, uprooted trees are yet to be cleared and electricity is yet to be restored In several places.
Thousands of acres of paddy fields, which were due to be harvested in a couple of weeks, are now submerged under water. Not just the crops, the cyclone has affected lives and properties of thousands in Andhra.
Satya Kumar (47), a police constable, died after a tree fell on him on the Kadapa highway while he was attending to his regular duties. In Tirupati, four-year-old Yeswanth in Chintapalli ST Colony, died when a hut’s wall fell on him.
Two people in the Eluru district of Buttaigudem died when an electricity pole fell due to heavy winds on a farmer’s kuchcha house. He had a fire burning in his house. Following the accident, the fire spread to another house nearby, resulting in two fatalities.
Northern Andhra Pradesh also reported deaths. At least three people died due to flash floods in the Paderu division, a tribal hamlet near Visakhapatnam.
More clarity on the death toll is expected in the next couple of days from the Andhra Pradesh government as they are still assessing the situation.
However, Left parties says that the government officials are trying to underplay the death toll to protect the government’s image.
Speaking to the South First, CPI(M) state executive member Ch Baburao said that, as per his estimate, the death toll was about 10 and the officials are underplaying it to protect the interest of Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy as the elections are scheduled in a few months.
The districts most impacted are the ones known as the “Rice bowl of Andhra Pradesh” in the Godavari basin. However, just a couple of weeks before harvesting, floods have submerged the paddy crops across erstwhile East and West Godavari districts.
Now, not just one or two, but around one lakh farmers across these eight districts find themselves in a dire state.
Speaking to South First, Human Rights Forum of Andhra Pradesh vice-president Siva Nageswar Rao, expressed the hope that the state government would fulfill its promise of purchasing the paddy.
He stated, “Only 10 percent of the farmers have harvested their crops; more than 90 percent are yet to harvest, but the floods have come.”
“Forget about the market value, which is ₹1,700 per 75 kg bag; the Andhra Pradesh government should not back-step from the promise of purchasing at the MSP of ₹1,550 per 75 kg bag from the farmers. It would be a great relief,” Rao emphasised.
According to several reliable reports, electricity in many places has not been restored yet. People who have been shifted to the refuge camps are expecting to return as soon as the water recedes.
“However, due to a lack of proper drainage facilities, water still remains in houses and streets, and people are yet to return to their normal lives,” Rao contended.
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