PESHAWAR: The rapid flood damages assessment of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations has indicated that about 1,313,756 hectares of the cultivated area was destroyed in the record-breaking rains followed by heavy floods in the country.
According to an FAO report, the highest losses in terms of crops cultivation were recorded in Punjab where about 661,637 hectares of land with standing crops was destroyed.
In Sindh, crops on about 357,372 hectares and in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa about (KPK) 1,91,020 hectares were destroyed, it added.
The main losses have been recorded in field crops, of which cotton, sugarcane, fodder crops and rice were found as worst affected crop of the current Kharif season, it added.
The statement further said that affected communities also suffered heavy losses in livestock and irrigation infrastructure which are of paramount importance for the livelihoods of the predominantly agrarian community.
A total of 2,74,334 livestock animals and 459,000 poultry have been reported lost.
Also, as many as 14 million livestock have been indirectly affected due to diseases, feed and fodder shortages and dislocation due to animal shelter destruction.
Most of the cultivated area especially cotton, sugarcane and rice cropped is cultivated with head canals diverted from main rivers.
Some 19,434 irrigation systems have been damaged due to banks being eroded by flood water or sedimentation due to flash floods and rains which will need immediate de-silting, repair or reconstruction.
The situation is still evolving and the data are preliminary, representing only a snapshot for a particular period. Also, access to some areas is not yet possible, thus a more detailed assessment will be required when access is restored, the FAO said. – APP
