T

he Cirebon regency administration has expanded the area of rice fields to increase its rice production target during the rainy season planting period, or rendeng, this year.

The regency plans to be home to 45,000 hectares of rice fields by the end of January, compared to 40,000 hectares in 2012.

Cirebon regency Agriculture and Husbandry Agency head Ali Effendi said on Thursday that so far, accelerated rice field planting had reached 30,000 hectares as of early January.

The expansion, he added, was aimed at securing the rice production target of Cirebon regency this year, which was targeted to reach 540,000 tons of dried unhusked rice, equivalent to 350,000 tons of rice.

Ali was upbeat that the target could be reached despite possible floods.

“We are optimistic about the target so that Cirebon’s position as a rice production center can be maintained. We will make efforts so that flooding doesn’t affect rice production in Cirebon,” he said.

Ali said his agency would urge farmers to plant rice in advance in order to reach the production target. Planting rice early can prevent crop failure from flooding, which is predicted to emerge again during high rainfall in early February.

“We have made the call from the end of last year, urging farmers to plant rice early in December,” he said. “We hope by the end of January we will have finished planting rice on the targeted 45,000 hectares of rice fields.”

The agriculture agency would provide farmers with prime seedlings and fertilizer to help them plant rice earlier, as well as tractors to expedite the planting, Ali said.

The administration has also prepared hundreds of water pumps to dry the rice fields in the event of flooding.

“We have mapped out a number of flood-prone rice fields during rainy season,” he said.

Ali said 11 out of 40 districts in Cirebon regency were prone to floods. The districts are Arjawinangun, Susukan, Gegesik, Kapetakan, Panguragan, Surannggala, Gunung Jati, Ciwaringin, Mundu, Gebang and Pabedilan.

They are located in downstream areas and are lower compared to other areas in Cirebon. Most of the irrigation channels in the districts are also severely damaged and could not distribute water well.

“Heavy downpours can cause water flowing from upstream to overflow and swamp rice fields,” Ali said.

A farmer in Kapetakan district, Supriatna, welcomed the administration anticipating the floods. “Most farmers in Kapetakan have responded to the call made by the administration to plant rice in advance. Hopefully, this can prevent crop failure due to flooding,” he said.

Cirebon regency, spanning 989.7 square kilometers and inhabited by 2.03 million people, is known as a major rice production center in West Java, after the regencies of Indramayu, Subang and Karawang.