A Tain, Corentyne, Berbice cattle farmer has estimated his losses to be over $20 million so far as a result of the present flood in Kokerite Savannah, which has forced cattle farmers to either attempt to quickly relocate their animals or watch them perish.
Romel Krishna, 31, yesterday told Stabroek News that he had about 600 head of cows, 400 sheep, and 400 goats at Kokerite Savannah. According to him, he was forced to relocate some of the animals about a week ago to Fourth Dept. Savannah “because them can’t able with the Kokerite Savannah since the rain start fall the water start get big.”
Krishna, who started helping his father at the tender age of five years, related that initially the farmers would rear their animals in the front parts of the savannah but after persons started to plant rice in the area, “we had to keep moving back and moving back till about to meet Canje Creek, where the water coming from.”
He said while they were at the Fourth Dept. Savannah, GuySuCo used a machine to crown off around the area. “Them block off the pumping trench dam, so all the drainage from front can’t go back deh, they block off all the drainage and the water bounce back from abbay… We use to get lil drainage through estate stylin but estate go block off everything now and we can’t get no drainage so the place come now like a swamp.”
Meanwhile, Krishna noted that some of his relocated animals have also died. “Them come weak so them dead and them one wah deh Kokerite Savannah when abbay go back for that one abbay na find them abbay only find couple a the spot where we left them and about nine dead there.”
“More than half a me thing them me lost. About three, four hundred head cow me bring a savanna and me only get about 50 cow pon the dam wah a save, the rest cow them dead”, he lamented yesterday as he prepared to head back to the area to search for his animals.
The man estimated his losses to be around $20 million as he has already lost over 200 head of animals. “Me a mine thing for years and now rain come and flood come and kill out all them thing that. Me a 31 and me a mine cow since me a 5 year old a go savanna, all them cow man know me, me grow together with that savannah and the mud and if now at 31 year me got to go raise back cow that na make no sense”, the frustrated man said.
He also noted that persons have approached him offering to purchase cattle at extremely low prices. “All this me a go through and people just want buy me things them for $5,000 and $6,000”, the cattle farmer fumed.
Krishna said that he was forced to hire more persons, “because we put some from the estate middle walk dam and me get workman a graze them cow that from the dam and the grass done from the dam too and eventually them a get weak.”
Presently, he has 20 staff who each earn $20,000 weekly as the workload has increased since the flood.
Also, Krishna has now purchased a boat and engine as they are planning to head to Kokerite Savannah daily to search for their animals there.
He also lashed out at rice farmers whom he said have taken over the area and are benefitting more than cattle farmers. “Them rice man go and take everything and them give them lease. Them put abbay a savannah and since 2008 them promise abbay lease because them go a survey at the back deh so them promise abbay them would a give abbay respectable location but them never do back nothing up to now.”
According to him, had this been done then they would have invested in their area and the situation might have been different. “Abbay na get nothing, abbay just deh in swamp them give abbay land abbay na get none street fa go in, abbay got to sell abbay cow, goat and sheep and abbay a make dam how much abbay able make and them na give abbay nothing. Abbay a make pen like abbay mad a savannah because abbay na know where abbay respectable location deh and people just a come and put abbay out.”
“If one man come from foreign and say he get lease and abbay done build pen for $10 million he carry abbay a court and abbay got to move out like one dog and go far down with the cow. Best abbay stop mine cow and go to rice”, he added.
Meanwhile, Krishna said, that after this situation his best bet might be to grow his herds. “We can’t sell none of them cow da, we got to increase them back because only cattle farming me a do. Me na plant rice, me na plant garden. Me believe pan milk and me cow.”
He stressed that there are some farmers who also plant rice and rear animals and therefore benefit from one or the other despite the situation. “Rice can’t go where cow deh. The whole savannah a turn rice savannah. All the high spot them rice man run for abbay got to move all the time and go down to Canje Creek where the water a come from so every year this go happen to abbay because abbay gone too far. Even where them man na plant them fence around.”
Krishna said that while he understands that this is “god work,” there are systems that could have been in place to assist the farmers. He is calling for the savannah to be surveyed and properly leased to cattle farmers.
However, the man yesterday said that he is also somewhat unsure about what the future holds for him. “Me done get bruk mind deh. Maybe all should a dead one day and me would a get one salvation and done and me just forget about them. Me like me just give up”, said Krishna who seemed extremely emotional about losing the animals, which he has cared for over many years.
