Rautahat. Farmers in Rautahat district have been hit hard due to lack of insurance for banana farming. Farmers in the district have been hit hard by the natural calamities due to lack of insurance in banana farming in different local levels of the district.

The storm that occurred on Monday evening has caused a lot of damage in Chandrapur municipality. Farmers in Chandrapur-3 have been hit hard by the complete destruction of banana crop worth Rs 15 million.

Banana farms have been completely damaged in Paurai of Chandrapur-1, Judibela of Chandrapur-2, Gaidatar of Ward-3 and Chandranigahapur of Ward-4, among other villages. Gaindatar village of Chandrapur-3 is known as a major area for banana production. Most of the farmers here have been commercially engaged in banana farming.

Deepak Gautam, a local farmer, said that thousands of banana plants were uprooted by the storm on Monday. Farmers are on the verge of financial collapse due to the loss of investment, labor and time.

Banana farmers have to face natural calamities every year. Gautam said that the banana farms are destroyed by storms, diseases and sometimes attacks by wild animals. He said that the demand for insurance for banana farming in Chandrapur Municipality has not been heard time and again.

Farmer Gautam has complained that Chandrapur Municipality Mayor Sanjay Kumar Kafle and various insurance companies have been ignored for the insurance scheme. He has been cultivating bananas in around 7 bighas of land. Banana farming has taken place in more than four hundred bighas of land in Rautahat and the storm has caused damages worth more than three crore rupees.

Ramesh Ghimire, another farmer of Chandrapur-3, said that the insurance of banana farming would be safe for the farmers. He said that farmers are facing problems due to lack of insurance. Ghimire said that insurance of every crop is mandatory in today’s time. He complained that insurance companies have been reluctant to insure banana farming citing high risk. As a result, farmers face more problems every year when natural disasters occur.

Chandrapur Municipality Mayor Sanjay Kumar Kafle said the municipality was ready to provide all kinds of support for the insurance of farmers. He said that he was ready to provide any kind of support for the insurance as insurance is very important for the crops.