RAJSHAHI, June 5, 2020 (BSS)- Above 36.22 lakh tonnes of potatoes were produced in Rajshahi division making the farmers happy due to its good yield and cherished market price amid the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Sources in the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) said, farmers got the potato yield from about 1.58 lakh hectares of land in all eight districts in the division during the harvesting season that ended very recently amidst generating job opportunities for many people.
They said the growers were seen delighted as they got good yield due to favourable weather conditions everywhere in the region, including its vast Barind tract which has become a suitable place for potato production over the past couple of years.
They are also getting a fair price for their produce this season at present.
In the present context of COVID-19 pandemic, the demand of potato has been enhanced to some extent as many of the government, non-government and volunteer organizations are seen distributing potato along with other food items as relief among the jobless and other hard hit families.
Currently, potato is being sold at Taka 950 to 1,000 per mound in local wholesale markets according to size and quality.
Monwar Hossain, a wholesaler at Shaheb Bazar, said the present market price is better than the corresponding time of the previous years. The price is now on upward trend, he added.
The DAE had set a target of producing more than 35.81 lakh tonnes of potato from around 1.56 lakh hectares of land in the division, said Sudhendra Nath Roy, Additional Director of DAE here today.
He said topography and climatic conditions were favorable to potato farming.
Mobarak Hossain, a farmer of Mougachhi area in Mohanpur Upazila, said the farmers were seen harvesting good yield as it has attained due to suitable climatic conditions. They are also happy with the present market price.
He has been cultivating potatoes commercially for more than 15 consecutive years and has brought 50 bigha of land under the cash crop farming this year.
He said the market price is good. An 85-kg potato sac is being sold at Taka 1,800 to 2,000 in local markets at present.
Abu Hena Mostofa Kamal, another commercial farmer of Mollikpur village under Paba upazila, said the number and acreage of the modern farming method has been enhanced significantly for the last couple of years because of its better output.
Commercial potato farming has been expanded to the dried lands in massive way during the last couple of years in the vast Barind tract as a result of promoting irrigation facilities by the Barind Multipurpose Development Authorities (BMDA).
Meanwhile, potato farming through the net house system for multiplying the tissue-culture based seed-potato successfully has also been gaining popularity in the region.
Mijanur Rahman Kazi, general secretary of Seed Potato Growers Cooperative Society, told BSS that around 500 seed growing farmers were very happy with their satisfactory yield achieved through using the net-house farming method this year.
He said the farming of foundation seed of potato through using tissue culture technology and net-house system has gradually been gaining popularity everywhere in the region for the last couple of years.