Farmers were grateful for the 256-hectare Bintang Bano Dam that was recently inaugurated by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) in West Sumbawa District, West Nusa Tenggara, on Friday.
According to the Press Bureau of the Presidential Secretariat, farmers around the dam were appreciative of the Bintang Bano Dam that can irrigate 6,700 hectares of paddy field.
One of the farmers in Moteng Village, Ahyar Rosadi, stated that irrigation canals from the dam can be used to open new lands for agriculture.
“We can use the irrigation channels of Bintang Bano Dam to open new agricultural land,” he noted.
According to Rosadi, the farmers there earlier relied on rainwater for irrigation, or known as the rain-fed farming.
Moreover, based on the farmers’ experiences, Bintang Bano Dam can reduce floods in Moteng Village. Rosadi admitted that since the dam became operational, no incidents of flooding occurred in the last two years.
“Once in 2018, the harvested rice was ready to be pounded, but heavy rains occurred and washed away (the harvested rice). The farmers were disappointed and suffered heavy losses at that time. However, Alhamdulillah (Thank God), due to the dam, recently, our village has not been flooded in the last two years,” he expounded.
Sangkot Rangkuti, another farmer in Bangkot Monteh Village, pointed out that the new dam yields concrete results in tacking flood problems.
“Before the (existence of) Bintang Bano Dam, our village until the Taliwang area were (often) flooded. However, now, no floods again occur,” Rangkuti elaborated.
“We hope that Mr. President can also pay attention to assistance for farmers, such as fertilizers, as they are hard to find. It is especially after this dam, we will (strive to boost the harvesting period to) thrice a year,” Rangkuti stated.
Source: Antara News