Farmers planting gainja aman to recoup losses

With recession of floodwater, farmers in Sariakandi upazila of Bogra have started planting T-aman saplings of 'gainja' variety in their farmland to recoup the losses. This photo was taken from Debdanga area in Kutubpur union of the upazila yesterday. Photo: Star

The farmers of Sariakandi upazila, the worst affected area in the district due to the recent floods, are trying to recoup the losses due to the natural calamity, thanks to the cultivation of late aman paddy gainja, especially in the char (landmass emerged from riverbed) areas.

After the receding of the floodwater, the farmers started planting gainja, a latest variety of sweet smelling paddy especially developed for the char areas, along with other crops in the damaged T-aman fields.

The variety ripens within 75-80 days of planting in the Jamuna Basin char areas of Sonatala, Sariakandi and Dhunat upazilas under Bogra district, said Salauddin Sardar, upazila agriculture officer of Sonatala.

No irrigation and fertiliser is needed for its cultivation and the yield is 10-12 maunds per bigha (33 decimal) of land, he added.  

Sariakandi upazila agriculture office sources said, different crops on at least 9,327 hectares of land were damaged in the flood that also destroyed T-aman seedbeds of 110 hectares out of 180 hectares of land.

The farmers are cultivating paddy with the saplings from the remaining 70 hectares of land that is mostly in highland areas of the upazila, they added.     

The farmers are now busy in planting gainja in the silty char lands and cultivation of the variety on 2225 hectares of land in Sariakandi upazila has been targeted, said sources of the Department of Agriculture Extension.

With the initiative of Abdul Mannan, lawmaker of Bogra-1 (Sariakandi and Sonatala) constituency, 200 farmers of Sariakandi upazila were provided gainja saplings free of cost for a bigha of land each on Saturday, said Sohel Mohammad Shamsuddin Firoz, upazila agriculture officer of Sariakandi.