'We've gone back 50 years': Pakistan farmers count flood damage

 Pakistani farmers are still affected by massive floods that have inundated a third of the country, but the long-term effects are already clear.

"We are 50 years behind the times," said Ashraf Ali Bhanbro, a farmer in Sindh province, who is expected to harvest 2,500 hectares of cotton and sugarcane. Flooding from record monsoon rains has affected more than 33 million people, with one of the worst-hit areas being Sindh in southern Pakistan. The province is divided by the mighty Indus River, where agriculture has flourished along its banks for thousands of years, with irrigation systems dating back to 4000 BC. Sindh's problem is twofold.

The province has been drenched with record rainfall locally, but this water has nowhere to go as the Indus islands are already swollen by rivers north of it to their maximum capacity and flooded by riverbanks in several places. "There was one time when it rained continuously for 72 hours," Bhanbro said. He added that he lost at least 270 million rupees ($1.2 million) in profits alone.

“The cost of fertilizers and pesticides… We don't count profits. It could have been much bigger because it was a good product.”

Without the ability to drain flooded farmland, farmers like Bhanbro cannot plant winter wheat, which is vital to the country's food security. "We are trouble free," said Wasim Ahmed, a cotton trader in Saleh Patta who, like many in the industry, has fixed purchase prices and paid up front to protect against inflation and market fluctuations. "Only 35 of the planned 200 pounds (about 8,000 kg, 18,000 pounds) were collected," he added, adding that the plan to expand the business had been put on hold.

In a small collection shop in Sindh's cotton market, two boys sewed wet cotton in half to see if anything was available. "The market is closing and the cotton mill is closing," said trader Ahmed, pointing to the shuttered shops.

Despite an overwhelming sense of helplessness, Dinno, a cotton picker, hopes for divine intervention. "We trust in God. He is the best savior," he said.

 

Read more: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-11175879/Weve-gone-50-years-Pakistan-farmers-count-flood-damage.html