Silchar: Largescale damage by pests in paddy fields has posed immense trouble for a large number of farmers of south Assam's Karimganj district.

Sources said around 3,000 bighas of crop (boro paddy) have been damaged across the district, particularly in South Karimganj constituency.

The affected villages include Farampasha, Berajal, Dholcherra and Suprakandi among others.

"The colour of the paddy fields has become reddish owing to the pest attacks in the past 15 days. Seeds were sown around one-and-a-half-months ago," a farmer said.

Members of the Karimganj Yuva Congress, including general secretaries Jayjul Hussain and Nasir Uddin, had visited the damaged lands recently.

They appealed to the agriculture department to take necessary measures to prevent pest attacks.

They also sought compensation from the government for all farmers who had suffered huge losses because of floods last year.

A team of the agriculture department, including Nilambazar agriculture development officer Kishore Kalita, and another worker, Bidyut Paul, have inspected the affected areas to assess the damage.

The officials said such attacks are common during this season. "Pesticides like Chlorpyrifos and Quinalphos are being distributed among farmers. The situation is somewhat under control now," an official said.

Karimganj was one of the worst-affected districts in Assam in last year's floods. Nearly 30,000 farmers had suffered losses.