Salt water of the river is entering mustard fields through new switch gate in Sandal Bill Gram Panchayat of Hingalganj. Mustard is spoiled due to salt water entering mustard fields through new switch gate, 100 to 150 bighas of crops are facing loss! Farmers. Pictures by Sanchita Chatterjee/BS News Agency.
Sanchita Chatterjee, BS News Agency: Farmers protest in front of the Bankra Dalalabad switch gate of Sandal Bill Gram Panchayat of Hingalganj in North 24 Parganas. It had been broken for a long time and no work was being done. So, this switchgate was constructed in a hurry by the West Bengal Government Development Council through the Panchayat. And the danger lies there. The start date of this project is 18-12-25 and the end date is 29/12 2025. The cost of which is 2 lakh 69 thousand 872 taka. But the locals complain that the work was done in such a hurry with low-quality materials that not even 2 thousand taka was spent on it. When a new switchgate was built, how did the water of Ichamati enter the mustard field through it? The mustard of bigha bigha land was damaged by salt water and as a result, the farmers are worried. Some have cultivated this mustard by taking loans from the association, while others have cultivated this mustard by taking loans from the market at high interest rates. Mustard farmer Tushar Kanti Mandal and other farmers are telling how they will repay the loan money. Paritosh Biswas, head of Sendel Bill Gram Panchayat, said, "I have heard that water has entered a switchgate in Bakra Dalalabad. Many farmers are facing problems. We, on behalf of the Panchayat, are making arrangements to drain the water quickly." He assured that this.