Flood turns vast arable land sandy
Vast tracts of fertile arable land in the villages of the Brahmaputra, Teesta, Dharla, Dudhkumar and Gangadhar river basin areas in Kurigram and Lalmonirhat have been covered with sand carried by floodwater.
According to Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) officials, about 10,000 bighas of arable land at around 90 villages in the two northern districts have been covered by sand, much to the worry of around 3,000 families mostly dependent on the land.
Sixty-three-year-old farmer Abdul Quader of Sardob village in Holokhana union of Kurigram Sadar upazila, said that he was very worried about the livelihood of his six-member family as his three bighas of arable land have been covered by sand carried by the floodwaters.
Due to the situation, many are trying to find alternative sources of income to maintain their families, he said, adding that Sardob is a remote area where agriculture is the lone source of income.
'Huge sand deposit has turned over 300 bighas of arable land in the village unfit for cultivation,' he also said.
Farmer Nazer Ali, 65, of Bogurapara village in Garialdanga union of Rajarhat upazila in Kurigram said that more than 1500 farmer families of Garialdanga union have been affected as 3,000 bighas of arable land lie fallow because of sand deposit.
Different types of crops mainly paddy used to be cultivated on the land but now lying barren, he said.
'We don't know how we will manage our livelihood,' he said.
Saher Ali, 58, a farmer from Falimari village in Mogholhat union of Lalmonirhat Sadar upazila, said that he has no choice but to idle away his time as his four bighas of arable land are under the sand.
'Sands carried by floodwaters from the upstream covered my arable lands, and I don't know how to remove the sand from my fields,' he said.
'It is not possible to remove sand manually,' he said adding that it is not possible to grow any crops on the sand filled land.
'I have no alternative to farming crops for my livelihood. I'm trying to remove the sand from the land manually but it needs huge labour and time,' said Mobarak Hossain, 60, a farmer from Begumganj village in Kurigram's Ulipur upazila.
Manjurul Haque, deputy director (DD) of DAE in Kurigram, said that a vast tract of arable land in different areas has become sandy because of the prolonged flood this year. The farmers cannot cultivate any crops until the sand is removed from the lands, he also said.
'Farmers are being advised to cultivate pumpkin and groundnut on the sand-covered lands,' the DD said adding that some farmers were trying to remove the deposit of sand manually but the majority of them kept their land fallow.
Comments