Kottayam: The paddy farmers in Kottayam district say damaged motors installed for pumping out water from the fields are delaying the sowing of paddy grains. The pumping started a month back.
K.P. Shaji who owns three acres in the 9,000-acre J Block at Kanjiram, says ten pumps the agriculture department installed on 1,800 acres of fields are not working at all.
“The department had installed damaged pumps. They can't pump out the water, despite the fact that the time for sowing grains has passed,” he told DC.
“The norms are that pumps should be brought from outside. However, the concerned officials have not adhered to that norm,”
Ponnappan, another farmer who owns five acres here, echoes the same concern.
The condition of the 600-acre paddy field at Thiruvayikuzhy adjacent to Kanjiram is also similar.
But agriculture officials insist that the pumping at the J Block began late, and they have not received any complaints so far.
“So far we haven’t received any complaints from farmers. I have to contact the concerned agriculture office. If there is a problem with the pumps, we will rectify it,” Mohammad Shareef, an assistant engineer with the department, told DC.
