Although there was a little rain at the beginning of the Bengali month of Sraban (monsoon), there is no more rain to be seen in Panchagarh district. There is the scorching Sun in the sky with only occasional drizzle which is hardly benefitting the Ropa Aman and Jute farmers of the district.
As a result, crop fields are burning everywhere in Panchagarh. Due to lack of rain, farmers are not able to plant Aman seedlings in high lands. And the Aman seedlings that have already been planted on the field are also drying up in the heat.
It has been observed in Sadar, Atwari, Boda, Debiganj and Tentulia upazilas of the district that farmers are not able to cultivate the land due to lack of water. Many farmers are forced to use shallow water pumps and motors to irrigate the land and plant Aman seedlings.
The advance Aman fields planted in rain water are shrinking due to lack of water. Meanwhile, the farmers have cut the jute and left it, being unable to ret them due to lack of water. As a result, the farmers have become concerned about Aman transplantation and jute retting.
Nurjaman, a farmer from Futkibari Dhanipara village in Garinapara union of Atwari upazila, said it was not possible to plant aman saplings on low lands due to lack of rain. It is not possible to wake up jute due to water crisis and water problem.
Mofizul Haque, a jute farmer from Kaldaspara village in 5 no Burburi union of Tentulia upazila of the district, said, “We mainly cultivate jute for the jute sticks that are used as fuel material, as the quality of the jute produced in our area is not so good”.
Nezaruddin, a farmer from Banglabandha UP in Tentulia Upazila, said the month of Sraban is actually the rainy season. If it rains for a few days in the month of Sraban, there is still no rain. So this time the land burst due to lack of water but so far no rain water has been seen. If it goes like this, then the land will remain fallow. Those who have planted seedlings will not have good rice. The water that I will plant the seedlings also has to be given with an irrigation pump. The cost of farming is increasing.
The Department of Agriculture says that due to climate change, there is not enough rain during the monsoon season. Therefore, farmers are being advised to plant Aman saplings using irrigators. The work of planting Aman saplings will be completed within the next one week. It is known that in Panchagarh district, Aman paddy saplings are usually planted in the land from mid-Ashar to Sraban month.
The farmers of the district started planting saplings at the beginning of the current monsoon season with the desired rainfall. The work of planting saplings in most of the lands has already been completed. The rest are jute fields and relatively high lands. Once the heavy rains fall, they will be able to finish planting. According to the Panchagarh Agriculture Department, the target for Aman cultivation in the current monsoon season is 99,960 hectares of land in the district, including Ufashi, hybrid and local varieties of paddy. So far, the work of planting saplings in 90,640 hectares of land has been completed.
The water of rivers and canals has dried up due to heavy rains. Those who have planted Aman lands dependent on rain water have suffered the most. They are not getting water anywhere. As a result, the paddy fields planted in advance are being destroyed due to lack of water. Farmers are fearful of crop failure as well as disruption of production targets of the agriculture department.
Md Mizanur Rahman, Deputy Director, Department of Agricultural Extension, said the work of planting Aman seedlings on 91 per cent land in Panchagarh district has already been completed. The planting of Aman saplings will be completed after one or two days of heavy rains.
