A plague of rats ruins rice crops in Indramayu<\/p>\n
Nana Rukmana, The Jakarta Post, Indramayu, West Java<\/p>\n
A plague of rats has infested hundreds of hectares of rice
\npaddies in the West Java town of Indramayu, causing widespread
\ncrop failure and about Rp 1.3 billion (US$147,000) worth of
\ndamage.<\/p>\n
Local farmers said on Monday they could not harvest at least
\n540 hectares of farmland, which had been decimated by rats.<\/p>\n
The affected areas include the subdistricts of Sukra and
\nBongas in west Indramayu, with rice fields in three villages in
\nSukra -- Arjasari, Bugel and Patrol -- and two in Bongas -- Cipat
\nand Bongas -- affected.<\/p>\n
Data from the Indramayu agriculture office showed the Sukra
\narea was the worst affected, with at least 373 of its total
\nl2,296 hectares of rice fields suffering crop failure.<\/p>\n
The age of the damaged rice in the villages was between 60 and
\n65 days, Sri said. Farmers usually harvest after three months of
\nplanting.<\/p>\n
The crop failure caused about Rp 1.3 billion in material
\nlosses to local affected farmers, he said.<\/p>\n
The rats in Sukra were believed to come from neighboring
\nvillages experiencing a drought when the affected farmers started
\nto grow rice late last year.<\/p>\n
His office had provided villagers with equipment to help fight
\nthe rats numbering in their thousands.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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