Boro Paddy crop has always been a substantial factor in our rice cultivation. We know that good boro cultivation will lead to cut in rice prices and make it affordable for people. Government has now put their focus in that regard and will not take new initiatives to cultivate boro crops.
According to a report published in this daily on Friday, additional hybrid paddy has been planted in 200,000 hectares of land this year due to its high production capacity. Incentives of Tk 73 crore have been given in this regard. Hybrid boro paddy has been produced in more than one lakh hectares of land than the original target. This will result in more than 3 lakh tones of extra paddy production.
This project will help work out
the mechanism on how to address
the needs of the boro farmers
However, the price of rice is stable at the moment and it will bear more fruit from this initiative. Government can put their focus on safeguarding farmers’ profit to ensure that boro farmers get their fair share of price. In every boro season, we often see postponement in the government procurement drive or the amount of paddy it chooses to obtain is only a portion of what is produced as a whole. This measure should change and farmers’ interest must be given priority.
In light of the country's reliance on boro, these government measures will help farmers in many regions who are still in dire need of irrigation as they lack proper equipment. Therefore, this project will help work out the mechanism on how to address the needs of the boro farmers. So, in all fairness, boro cultivation and harvesting deserve a great significance to our food security and sustainability.