Flood-hit farmers smile
Flood-hit farmers in the district have started harvesting early varieties of Aman paddy, making all sections of people happy as this paddy is likely to combat rice price hike.
The paddy also creates employment opportunity for farm workers during the monga period in Bangla months of Awshin and Kartik as they sit idle during the time after transplantation of Aman paddy saplings ends in mid August.
Additional Deputy Director of Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) in Nilphamari Md Keramat Ali said, “Early varieties of paddy take only 90-100 days to ripen after transplanting while traditional varieties need 140-150 days and farmers are now inclining to early varieties to arrange food in crisis period and also to get good price.”
Anwarul Islam, sub assistant agriculture officer, said Aman paddy was cultivated on 1.13 lakh hectares of land this year. Early varieties of paddy like Bina-7, Brri Dhan-33, Brri Dhan-39, Brri Dhan-57 and some hybrid varieties were cultivated on 20 thousand hectares to produce 60 thousand tonnes of rice. Harvesting on 500 hectares has been completed.
Farmers, who harvest early varieties of paddy, can now cultivate potato two times one after another and become benefited before Boro paddy season starts in April, he said.
Visiting different villages like Chadkhana, Putimari and Nitai in Kishoreganj upazila and Laxmichap, Ramganj and Sukhdhon in Sadar upazila, it was found that farmers are passing busy time in cutting and threshing early varieties of paddy in jubilant mood.
Grower Ayub Ali of Chadkhana village said he cultivated early variety Brri Dhan-33 on four bighas of land and got 64 maunds.
I'm greatly benefited as I got Tk 45 thousand by selling paddy at a rate of Tk 700 per maund while my expenditure was Tk 16 thousand only,” he said.
Paddy farmer Mahatabullah, also a cattle rearer of Putimari village, said flood swept away his straw piles and grass in grazing fields but he has no problem now as he got 1600 bundles of straw from two bighas after threshing paddy, which will be enough for two months.
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