Cyclone Remal: Betel leaves on 500 hectares damaged in Patuakhali, Barguna

Over 6,700 betel leaf farmers in Patuakhali and Barguna districts were badly affected by Cyclone Remal, which left them in uncertainty as how to cover up the massive losses.
Cyclone Remal damaged betel leaves on 496 hectares of land, out of total 1,012 hectares, in the two districts, according to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE).
Farmer Md Tipu Sultan of Barguna's Sadar upazila, said, "Cyclone Remal severely damaged two of my three betel leaf gardens. I invested Tk 4 lakh after taking a bank loan. The yield was good. I expected to see some profit. However, everything was destroyed by the cyclone. How am I going to pay this debt now?"

Damage to a betel leaf garden caused around Tk 4 lakh lose to a farmer, Badal Howladar. He said that the betel plants were uprooted during the cyclone because of the strong wind.
"I am unable to repair the harm it has done. I am in need of financial assistance," he said.
According to Abu Syed Md Jobaidul Alam, deputy director of Barguna Department of Agricultural Extension, Cyclone Remal has damaged betel leaves on 184 of the 400 hectares in Barguna, resulting in a loss of approximately Tk 11.5 crore. Out of 4,000 farmers, about 3,500 have been impacted.

Meanwhile in Patuakhali's Sadar upazila, farmer Shusen Sarkar said that 30 decimals of his betel leaf had been damaged.
Farmer Nimai Mistry, who is a neighbour of Shusen, said that betel leaves on 12 out of his 24 decimals of land have been damaged. His farming lands were inundated under three feet of tidal surge.
Nazrul Islam, deputy director of the Patuakhali DAE, told The Daily Star that betel leaves on 312 hectares land were damaged in the district. Around 3,284 betel leaf farmers have been impacted by the cyclone. Higher authorities have received a prepared list of the impacted farmers.
Around Tk 6 crore has been lost financially from 312 hectares of land in Patuakhali, he added.
Meanwhile, because of severe damage to the betel leaves, the price of betel leaves has gone up in the local market by 20 to 25 percent.
Asim Sarkar, a wholesaler of betel in the Newmarket area of Patuakhali, said that the cyclone had significantly reduced the market's supply of betel leaves. There has been a minimum 20 percent increase in the cost of betel leaves. The cost of one choli (38 pieces) of betel leaves has gone up from Tk 15 to Tk 20 in the retail market as well.
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