BSS, Rangpur
Farmers are continuing plantation of Boro seedlings with huge enthusiasm and full efforts for achieving a record production target as fixed by the government for 16 northern districts this season.
Preparation of all variety Boro seedbeds has already been completed and the farmers are planting Boro seedlings in full swing everywhere to achieve the fixed target.
The pre-election commitments of Awami League (AL) president Sheikh Hasina of bringing down prices of the fertilisers and agri- inputs side by side the essentials have created further enthusiasm among the farmers in the region. The farmers are very enthusiastic in making the Boro farming programme successful and even to produce more rice and they sought cooperation from the next government to make the country self-reliant in food production.
The Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) sources today told BSS that a record target of producing 66,59,361 tonnes of Boro rice from 15,69,209 hectares of land has been fixed for the current season in northern Bangladesh.
Last year, the farmers had achieved a super bumper Boro production when the DAE had fixed a production target of 59,58,980 tonnes of Boro rice from 15,08,137 hectares land and the production was 17 percent higher than the fixed target.
DAE’s Deputy Director (DD) of Rangpur Agriculture Zone Nur Mohammad said that special emphasis has been given on using the latest technology and increased farming hybrid variety Boro to help the farmers achieving the target this season. Increased yield of Boro is expected this year because of the training being provided to the farmers on the latest technologies along with all possible facilities including fertilizers and other agri-inputs.
The farmers may bring vast lands under hybrid variety Boro farming this season than any time in the past as they have been getting bumper production of hybrid variety Boro every year in recent years, he said.
Special steps have also been taken by the other concerned agri- departments to bring more land under Boro farming including cultivation of hybrid varieties at larger scales aiming to increase the production further for ensuring the country’s food security.
Hybrid varieties of Boro paddy are being cultivated in more and more lands this season to further increasing Boro rice production, senior DAE officials said.
Officials said the farmers could achieve more yield this year as the special awareness building and training activities are being conducted for them on the latest technologies and provided with all possible facilities.
There are tremendous potentials of increasing the overall rice production than that of the previous annual productions through ensuring supply of hybrid seeds to the farmers during the Boro farming season, they added.
The early variety Boro plants are growing well in the low- lying beds of the dried-up water bodies, beels and haors where the farmers transplanted the seedlings much ahead to harvest those before commencement of the next rainy season.
Courtesy: nation.ittefaq.com
