Shillong: Cyclones Arnab and Murasu decimated crops across 461,194 hectares in Andhra Pradesh. State officials confirmed the destruction on Tuesday. Agricultural losses hit hard across the region. Horticulture took a massive beating too, with 29,960 hectares ruined.
State Agriculture Minister Kinjarapu Atchannaidu held a teleconference with senior officials to audit the wreckage. Cyclone Arnab alone ruined 327,843 hectares in 15 districts. The storm impacted 523,136 farmers. Total production loss sits at 978,091 tonnes, costing the state Rs 2,392.84 crore. Dr B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema district suffered the most, losing 99.19 per cent of its cultivated area.
Authorities project a need for Rs 815.57 crore from the State Disaster Response Fund and Rs 714.96 crore from the National Disaster Response Fund for Arnab recovery. Cyclone Murasu hit nine districts, destroying 133,351 hectares. This second storm impacted 186,269 farmers and caused Rs 816.53 crore in damages. Officials estimate a production loss of 338,302 tonnes, requiring an additional Rs 321.64 crore in SDRF and Rs 266.67 crore in NDRF support.
Horticulture damage is widespread. Arnab harmed 23,211.48 hectares across 215 mandals. Officials finished counting damages for 99.24 per cent of those sites. Murasu damaged another 6,748.52 hectares in eight districts. However, counting for these fields is slow. Only 32.77 per cent of the horticultural area for Murasu is fully documented. Atchannaidu ordered a push to finish the work. He insisted, "The enumeration process must be expedited to ensure that no eligible farmer is left out."
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