Climate change, rains devastate 31,596 acres of farmland in KP

Climate change and torrential rains have destroyed 31,596 acres of farmland in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), wiping outstanding crops and causing financial losses worth billions of rupees. 

The provincial agriculture department has released initial data confirming the extent of the destruction caused by the recent floods and cloudbursts. The report shows that Buner suffered the heaviest damage, with 26,141 acres affected. Of this, 23,487 acres of maize fields, 1,300 acres of rice, 700 acres of vegetables and 641 acres of orchards were completely lost. In Lower Swat, crops across 2,702 acres were destroyed, including 729 acres of maize, 1,209 acres of rice, 334 acres of vegetables, 362 acres of orchards and 68 acres of other farmland.

Elsewhere, the damage extended across the province: 3.25 acres in Battagram, 214 acres in Bajaur, 87 acres in Charsadda, 617 acres in Lower Dir, 88 acres in Mansehra, 130 acres in Nowshera, 520 acres in Shangla, 1,035 acres in Swat, two acres in Upper Swat, and 55 acres in Upper Chitral.