RAJSHAHI, Feb 25, 2019 (BSS) – Scientists and researchers stressed proper
uses of modern technology to boost crop production, urging farmers to
cultivate less-water consuming crops for mitigating pressure on ground water
in Barind area, taking its existing drought situation into consideration.
They came up with the stress at a daylong farmers training workshop titled
“Technology Validation for Drought Management to Sustainable Crop Production
in Drought-prone Barind area” here yesterday.
Regional Wheat Research Station (RWRS) organized the training in
association with Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) and Upazila office
of Barind Multipurpose Development Authority (BMDA) at Shapahar Upazila
Farmers Training Center.
BMDA Chairman Dr Akram Hossain Chowdhury and DAE Deputy Director Masudur
Rahman addressed the workshop as chief and special guests respectively with
RWRS Principal Scientific Officer Dr Ilias Hossain in the chair.
BMDA Executive Engineer Abdul Maleque Chowdhury, Upazila Agriculture
Officer Md Muniruzzaman and BMDA Assistant Engineer Rejaul Karim also spoke.
Dr Chowdhury said emphasis should be given to promote the less-irrigation
consuming cereal crops instead of depending on only Irri-Boro farming in
Barind area to lessen the gradually mounting pressure on underground water.
He referred to various research findings and said that there are enormous
scopes of increasing the production of various low-water consuming crops like
wheat, lentil, maize and mugdal in the high Barind tract.
Farmers in the Barind region comprising Rajshahi, Naogaon and
Chapainwabganj districts should be imparted time-fitting training so that
they can cultivate more less-irrigated crops, he added.