Farmers suffer losses Rs.50 billion due to flash floods: SAB.

HYDERABAD -- The farmers of Sindh claimed to have

suffered losses to the tune of around Rs.50 billion d e to the flash

floods entailed by the heavy monsoon rains across the province. The Sindh Abadgar Board, which lobbies for rights of the farmers, claimed here on Sunday that the crops of dates, cotton, onion,

chillies, cauliflower and other vegetables had been destroyed.

A meeting of the board, chaired by Vice President Mehmood Nawaz Shah, pointed out that the farmers were supposed to harvest 220,000 tons of ates but the torrential showers destroyed around 150,000 tons. Shah said the dates were either ready for harvest or were being dried up when rains began to lash the province. According to him, the cotton farmers suffered immensely due to water

shortage from March to June and the heavy rains starting early July destroyed the crops in the cotton belts in Sanghar, Mirpurkhas and other districts.

In addition to that more than 70 percent of onion had also been ravaged in areas of Tando Allahyar, Matiari, Mirpurkhas and other districts, he claimed.

"The losses will further increase if the incessant rains continue," he warned. He said the devastation of the crops had happened at a time when the country was already dealing with high inflation and the farmers were affected by the same in the form of doubling of the cost of inputs. Shah claimed that urea, which was the highest consumed fertilizer, was still not available at the company declared rates.

"The agricultural economy is under stress," he observed, adding that the situation would also leave a negative impact on the economy of Pakistan in coming months.

"It is therefore important that short and medium-term measures are taken to rehabilitate...