14 December 2009: Farmers have been ordered to cultivate summer paddy by the Kalemyo Township Peace and Development Council (TPDC) in order to control the market price of rice during the summer months, in Sagaing division western Burma.

“The Kalemyo TPDC chairman has ordered cultivators, who have access to water during summer, to cultivate summer crop annually to help control the market price,” said a farmer in Kalemyo.

Cultivators, however, want to plant winter crops instead of summer rice. “They have already cultivated monsoon rice, but when they are planning to cultivate winter crops they were ordered to plant summer rice,” said a local.

Cultivators in Kalemyo plant winter crops like cauliflower, peanuts, onions, garlic, sunflower and other vegetables but now they have to cultivate according to the order of the authorities.

“Five acres of my onion cultivated areas were destroyed on the orders of the military and then I was ordered to cultivate summer rice. I’ve lost around one lakh Kyat last year. Other farmers also faced similar problems,” said a farmer in Chichai village, Kalemyo Township.

Although the authorities ordered cultivation of summer rice in order to control the market price, they purchase rice at a low price for families of military personnel.

There are around 50,000 acres of land which are suitable for cultivation of summer rice in Kalemyo Township.

Similarly, farmers in Tamu townships were also ordered to cultivate summer rice in the forthcoming summer season.