RAJSHAHI, April 28, 2019 (BSS)- Speakers at a meeting urged the farmers to cultivate mug bean and sesame in the Barind area as these two drought crops are suitable for farming in the region.
As the groundwater level is depleting fast in the Barind region, these drought-tolerant varieties will contribute to maintaining ecological balance in the Barind region, they added.
They came up with the observation while distributing seed of mug bean and sesame among some of the farmers at Barendra Eco Park, an integrated agricultural farm, in Sapahar Upazila of the district yesterday afternoon.
Regional Wheat and Maize Research Station arranged the programme in association with Barind Multipurpose Development Authority (BMDA), which was attended by more than 80 farmers both males and females.
On the occasion, 20 farmers were given 100 kilograms of mug bean and 12
kilograms of sesame seeds free of cost with the main thrust of motivating and
encouraging them towards the cash crop farming.
BMDA Chairman Dr Akram Hossain Chowddhury and Upazila Agriculture Officer
Md Muniruzzaman addressed the programme as chief and special guests
respectively with Managing Director of Barendra Eco Park Sohel Rana in the
chair.
Dr Akram Chowdhury said there is a bright prospect of yielding additional
five lakh metric tons of mug bean every year in the high barind tract
comprising Rajshahi, Naogaon and Chapainawabganj districts.
He viewed around one lakh bigha of land remains fallow for more than three
months after the harvest of rabi crops like wheat, mustard, potato and tomato
every year. There has been enormous scope of bringing the huge land under mug
bean and sesame farming in order to have best uses of those alongside
increasing cropping intensity amid the current water-stress condition.
Referring to various salient features of Mug dal production he said: “No
additional cost for fertilizer, pesticide and irrigation is needed to
cultivate this short-term cash crop”.
Referring to the immense prospect of the crop, he also said that if the
yield could be enhanced to the expected level through successful expansion of
the modern cultivation method among the growers, country’s hard-earned
foreign currencies would be saved.
He said the country has to import huge Mug dal to meet its domestic
demand. Since there is a bright prospect of increasing its acreage, he said
Mug dal could be produced in larger amount with less production cost and the
yield will, no doubt, lessen pressure on import.
Muniruzzaman told the farmers that mug bean is a drought tolerant short
duration crop which will be suitable for the drought-prone area’s
environment.
Cultivation of Mug dal has been playing a significant role in crop
intensity and diversification, he added.