Low aman price frustrates Patuakhali farmers

Good yield of aman paddy fails to bring smile to the farmers in the district as the present market prices are too low to recover even their production cost.

"I came to Patuakhali Puran Bazar to sell four maunds of aman paddy but got very frustrated to see it selling for Tk 450 to 520 per maund," said Abdul Mannan, 50, a marginal farmer of Jainkathi village under Sadar upazila.

"The production cost per maund had crossed Tk 700 as the price of fertiliser, rent of power tiller, and labour cost are very high. I had to borrow some money for cultivation of the main crop. How will I repay the loan?" he said.

Md Jakir Hossain of Lohalia village under the same upazila said he cultivated aman on four acres of land this season and was happy to get 30 maunds of yield per acre on an average but now he is facing loss due to price fall.

"I had borrowed money from my relatives for the cultivation and planned to repay it after selling the produce. I had to use insecticide to control pest as 'leaf folding' disease found in aman paddy land this year at a large scale and the cost increased," he said.

The government should take steps to ensure fair prices of paddy to save the farmers, he added.

During a visit to Badura Bazar in Galachipa upazila, this correspondent saw tepushail variety of aman paddy selling for Tk 450 to 500 per maund, kazolshail for Tk 460 to 510, and rajashail for Tk 400 to 500.

"Wholesale buyers from northern districts including Natore and Dinajpur usually come to this area every year to buy aman paddy for good prices but this season they have not come. It is the main reason for low price of aman," said Masudur Rahman, a wholesale buyer of Baufal upazila's Kalaiya Bazar, the largest paddy market in the district.

Around 4.50 lakh tonnes of aman paddy was produced from 2 lakh 269 hectares of land in Patuakhali district this season, said sources of the Department of Agriculture Extension.