Bogra flood takes toll on bananas

Nearly 100 hectares of banana orchards in the district have been badly damaged following the flood in August this year, adding to the woes of banana growers in eight upazilas of the district.

About 1,500 banana farmers in eight upazilas have to count losses of Tk 10 crore as the flood hit their orchards badly.

Farmers in the district have cultivated banana on 1,000 hectares of land, sources said.

According to officials of the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) in Bogra, about 100 acres of banana orchards in Shibganj and Sonatala upazilas have been completely destroyed while another 150 acres have been partially damaged in the other six upazilas.

The government announced a Tk 58.77 crore incentive for the flood-hit farmers, who faced setback on 10 major crops like wheat, maize, peanut, mustard, lentil, pulses and BT Brinjal, across the country. 

On the other hand, banana growers, who also counted huge losses due to the recent flood, were not included in the list of the beneficiaries.

DAE Deputy Director (Horticulture) Mohammad Abdur Rahim said the government allocated incentives for short-term Rabi crop farmers so that growers affected by the natural disaster could recover quickly.

“Banana is not a Rabi crop as it takes quite some time to bear fruit,” he added.

Grower Mithu Sheikh of Hayatpur village in Sonatala upazila said he spent Tk 30,000 for cultivating bananas on his 40-decimal orchard, but the floodwater damaged all the bananas a few days before harvesting.

Mithu said he took loan from Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank and is now facing uncertainty about how to repay the installments.

Khwaja Sardar of Milkipur village in Shibganj, an area known as the largest producer of bananas in Bogra, said nearly 200 bighas of banana orchards were badly affected by the flood and about 80 to 90 farmers of the village faced a major setback.

Generally, growers of main crops affected by natural disasters receive incentives from the government, but there is no incentive or rehabilitation programmes for the banana cultivators, said Deputy Director of DAE in Bogra Pratul Chandra Sarker.