GAIBANDHA, Feb 5, 2021(BSS) – Plants of orange fleshed sweet potato (OFSP), one of the improved varieties of crop released by Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) and farmed by the char and river basin farmers of the district that grew well on the char land last year, have satisfied the farmers with a good yield during the current season too.
Officials sources said, BARI set up an office under the banner ‘On Farm Research Division (OFRD)’ in the district town in 2016-2017 fiscal year with the financial support of National Agriculture Technology and Bangladesh Agriculture Research Council aimed at making the BARI released improved varieties more popular to the farmers and helping the growers earn economic profit by producing and selling the varieties to change their lots economically.
The scientists led by principal scientific officer Dr. Al Mahmud of OFRD here motivated the farmers of chars and Brahmaputra river basin areas of the district to farm the varieties including OFSP to attain the cherished goals of the BARI.
In response, 21farmers residing on the chars and river basin areas of the district farmed the variety on 21 bighas of sandy char land last year. The plants of the variety which grew well and gave the growers desired output.
Rafiqul Islam, a grower of chinirptal char under Shaghata upazila of the district said, he and other fellow growers are so much happy to see the crop land of OFSP as the variety grew well on the land and for this, they are expecting desired yield from the variety during the current season too.
They are eagerly waiting for the harvest of the variety, he also said.
Hearing this, many farmers are coming from far flung areas of the district to have a glimpse of the OFSP cropland and showing their interest to farm the variety in next seasons after visiting the crop land, he said.
PSO of OFRD Dr. Abdullah Al Mahmud told the BSS that a number of enthusiastic farmers were selected to farm the variety and as per the advice of the office, they farmed the variety on their sandy char land for the first time on pilot and trial basis.
Earlier, the selected farmers were provided with needed base training and vines (seedlings) from the office for the cultivation of the variety successfully, he added.
If the growers are satisfied and get desired output against the crop this season, necessary measures would be taken for commercial production of the variety by the farmers on their vast tracts of unused sandy char land of the district in coming season, he informed.