RANGPUR, May 25, 2021 (BSS) – Farmers have brought 56,412 hectares of land under jute cultivation this season in the agriculture region where tender jute plants are growing superbly predicting a bumper production of the fibre crop.
Officials of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) said a target of producing 6,89,367 (six lakh 89 thousand and 367 bales) of jute has been fixed from 58,520 hectares of land of all five districts in the region during the current season.
The target includes production of 6,45,936 bales of ‘Tosha’ variety jute fibre from 54,100 hectares of land, 34,928 bales of ‘Deshi’ variety from 3,560 hectares of land, 2,628 bales of ‘Mechta’ variety from 360 hectares of land and 5,875 bales of Kenaf variety of jute from 500 hectares of land.
However, farmers in the region have finally cultivated jute on 56,412 hectares of land, less by 2,108 hectares of land or 3.60 percent against the fixed farming target for the crop this season.
Of the total land, 9,197 hectares in Rangpur, 16,460 hectares in Gaibandha, 19,980 hectares in Kurigram, 4,075 hectares in Lalmonirhat and 7,000 hectares in Nilphamari districts.
“The tender jute plants are growing superbly amid favourable climatic conditions in the region where harvest of the crop will begin from July next,” said Agriculturist Bibhubhushan Roy, additional director of the DAE for Rangpur region.
After getting a lucrative price between Taka 4,000 and Taka 5,000 per mound of jute last season, farmers are showing more interest in farming high yielding varieties of jute.
Due to crop diversification and cultivation of Aush rice and maize on more land area, the fixed target for jute farming could not be achieved this season in the agriculture region.
Demand of jute continues increasing in local markets since declaration of jute as a national agricultural product by the government along with mandatory use of jute sacs in various sectors to ensure fair price of the production for farmers.
Like in the previous years, the DAE, other related organisations and dealers supplied locally produced high quality and imported jute seeds to the farmers and provided latest technologies to them to expand jute cultivation for reviving past glory of the fibre.
“The DAE has also provided necessary training and inputs to the farmers for separating and rotting of jute fibre adopting the latest technologies to ensure better quality for getting higher price of their produced jute,” Roy added.
Talking to BSS, Senior Coordinator (Agriculture and Environment) of RDRS Bangladesh Agriculturist Mamunur Rashid said tender jute plants are growing fabulously now amid favourable climatic conditions predicting an abundant production of the crop.
Farmers Jafar Ali, Moksed Ali, Amenur Rahman, Abdur Rahim, Mubarak Hossain and Ershadul Haque of different villages in Rangpur said the tender jute plants are growing excellently on their crop fields predicting a bumper production this season.