• THERESA MAE DULMAN
A total of 3,296 sugar farmers and laborers in Bacolod City, affected by the red-striped soft scale insect (RSSI) infestation, received direct aid under the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s Emergency Cash Transfer program.
Each qualified recipient was allocated P10,325 in financial assistance to cushion the impact of damaged sugarcane crops and lost earnings.
Bacolod Department of Social Services and Development head, Dr. Richelle Verdeprado-Mangga, confirmed that the one-time assistance was rolled out over two days, starting Oct. 10 at SM City Bacolod, with 1,504 beneficiaries served that day.
“We are Batch 4 among those given assistance in NIR (Negros Island Region), and we divided the barangays into batches so the farmers wouldn’t crowd the venue,” she said.
She added that beneficiaries underwent strict verification by the City Agriculture Office and the Sugar Regulatory Administration to confirm crop damage and farm employment before receiving the cash assistance.
Bacolod was declared under a state of calamity due to the severe agricultural and economic crisis brought about by the RSSI infestation Aug. 5.
The formal declaration by the Sangguniang Panlungsod came after the City Agriculture Office certified that the infestation already compromised 2,000 hectares, out of the 3,056 hectares planted to sugarcane, or a 65.45 percent damage, equivalent to around P200 million. | TMD
