71% cultivated land damaged in 2023–24 Maha season

Colombo, April 22 (Daily Mirror) - The Agriculture Department revealed today that 71 percent of the total cultivated land, other than paddy cultivation, was damaged in the 2023–24 Maha season due to heavy rains and floods.

Accordingly, a total of 68,131 hectares of land cultivated with vegetables and other crops have been destroyed in the country during 2023–24 due to the heavy rains and floods. 

In addition, 100,000 hectares of paddy fields cultivated during the Maha season during the same period were also damaged due to heavy rains and floods.

Apart from this, another 23,874 hectares of land cultivated with vegetables and other crops were affected by pests and other diseases, totaling 27 percent of the damaged cultivated land.

However, in April, vegetable and fruit cultivation has improved once again and the harvest has increased by now. 

The Agriculture Department also said that due to the favorable weather conditions, especially during February and March, vegetable and other crop cultivation have been very successful, and therefore the prices of vegetables have decreased significantly.