Dear Editor,
I wish to reply to a letter by Mr Ashraf Ghani in the Stabroek News on Monday, December 15, captioned ‘Rice lands flooded because of faulty drainage.’
First of all I wish to state that what was discussed at Golden Fleece in the presence of the Minister of Agriculture was that if Mr Ghani withdrew his case and subsequently the injunction against the Drainage and Irrigation Department of Region No. 2 then the department would seek to block the main drainage trench in Maria’s Lodge from draining into the koker in question, and not remove the koker and block off the dam, as is stated in the letter.
It was further stated that when the new double-door sluice at Golden Fleece becomes fully operational drainage would improve at Johanna Cecelia where Mr Ghani’s plot is situated.
The koker in question was constructed in excess of twenty years ago, and that was done after taking the following into consideration:
1. The koker was constructed on a dam that separates Maria’s Lodge on the south and Johanna Cecelia on the north. Maria’s Lodge has a great portion of its land slope or gradient to the north, and as such drainage through the Onderneeming sluice was not very effective.
2. The sluice at Onder-neeming is prone to siltation and whenever this happens Maria’s Lodge can be relieved through the koker into the Johanna Cecelia façade.
What must be noted is that Mr Ghani stated that the koker discharges water from Maria’s Lodge into his rice lands, which is not true. The koker discharges water into a trench that leads to the façade and subsequently to the Golden Fleece sluice.
Mr Ghani also agreed that the rice lands adjacent to the dam on the southern side can drain through the koker, but opposed draining water from the main drainage trench through the koker.
We therefore block off water from the main drainage trench going through the koker, but Mr Ghani is still not satisfied.
Mr Ghani is not the only farmer in the area; there are many other farmers, but only he complains. Myself and other officers visited Mr Ghani’s plot whenever he complained about losing his crops and always found his complaints without foundation. This was even done today (December 15, 2008) and we haven’t seen any sign of him losing his crop.
Because of the blocking off of the drainage trench in Maria’s Lodge the Drainage and Irrigation Department will have to look at placing a pump at the Onderneeming sluice to relieve farmers and residents from flooding in the Maria’s Lodge and Suddie area.
Mr Ghani in the past was asking for the Drainage and Irrigation Department to block the same area that the machine blocked, but is now extending his claim.
Yours faithfully,
Samaroo
Vice Chairman
Region No. 2
