Record target set for potato cultivation in the north

Bss, Rangpur

The Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) has fixed a record target for producing 49,66,220 tonnes of potato from 3,00,983 hectares during the current Rabi season in all the 16 districts of the country's northern region.

The target is higher by 5,58,284 tonnes this season than that of the last year as the farmers will bring more 51,383 hectares of land under cultivation. The last year's target was 44,07,936 tonnes from 2,49,383 hectares, officials said yesterday.

The per hectare production target has been fixed at 16.50 tonnes this time.

The DAE officials said the farmers have already started sowing early-variety potatoes in many areas after harvesting short duration Aman paddies and the process will get momentum with the progress of T-Aman harvesting that just started in the region.

However, the farmers are expected to cultivate potato in more land than the fixed target this time for more profits following the recent reduction in non-urea fertiliser prices by about 36 percent as it will cut production costs.

Sharecroppers are also showing interest in farming potato on large scale after getting agri-loans without any deposits for the first time this year and the char farmers are also preparing for producing potato in the river basins this season.

Government departments including the DAE, Bangladesh

Agriculture Development Corporation, Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute and a number of NGOs have taken steps for providing quality potato seeds among the farmers to make the programme a success, officials said.

The departments and administration concerned have taken adequate steps for ensuring smooth supply of chemical fertilisers, pesticides, technical assistance and other inputs to the potato growers at the grassroots.

The early-variety potatoes may appear in the local markets by mid-December as the farmers have cultivated those much ahead of the usual schedule in greater Rangpur, Bogra and Joypurhat and in some other places of the region, officials said.

Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank, commercial banks, other financial institutions and a number of NGOs are providing easy-term agri-loans and the DAE and BADC have been distributing potato seeds and other inputs among the farmers.

A number of farmers told the news agency that prices of potato seeds are very high this time in the local markets because of higher prices of the commodity throughout the year and production fall during last year.

“We are facing some problems in purchasing potato seeds as the quantity of potato seeds being supplied by the BADC and DAE is not sufficient," they said.

“The farmers will face no seed problems as they have their own stocks and private companies are selling imported seeds this time," deputy director of DAE, Gaibandha Kamal Shariful Alam told the news agency yesterday.