Boro cultivation on amidst foggy weather

Farmers in different upazilas of the district are passing busy time in planting Boro saplings amid the ongoing cold and foggy weather across the region.

Growers said they have started Boro cultivation around two weeks ago and it will continue for further four weeks but the ongoing cold spell is hampering their plantation process.

Farmer Mizanur Rahmanof Baghajhora village in Nazipur upazila though all the farmers in his locality are passing busy time in sowing Boro saplings, the severe cold is hampering their work as they cannot go to their fields in early morning.

Many farmers said as most of the lands under Nazipur and some parts of Nesarabad and Pirojpur Sadar upazilas are marshland, they cannot grow Aman, which is the main crop of the region, there.

Usually they wait for this time of the year when the water level decreases there and they can go for Boro cultivation in those marshlands, they said.

"Boro is our main crop as most of the areas here remain submerged in most times of the year except the winter," farmer Sayed Daria from Malikhali village in Nazirpur said, adding that this year no land will remain uncultivated as the price of paddy is much higher than the previous year.

"Last year we couldn't even sell one maund of paddy at Tk 600, but this year per maund of paddy is being sold for over Tk 1100," Sayed said, adding that, they get 40 maunds of paddy from each bigha of land spending Tk 20,000.

According Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) in Pirojpur the department have a target to bring 23,500 hectares of land under Boro cultivation this year.

Last year, about 22,915 hectares of land was brought under Boro cultivation.  Besides, among the seven upazilas of the district Nazirpur is the highest Boro producing upazila.