The banana farmers in Jhenaidah have been happy due to satisfactory yield and price in the season. It has been helping them strengthening their socio-economic base from the crop. The area of banana farming is expected to be expanded in the district in the next season, the farmers and the officials of the department of agricultural extension (DAE) said.
A number of farmers in Bhatai Bazer area in Shailkupa upazila of Jhenaidah when contacted said they have been spending an amount of Tk 70 to 80 thousand for banana farming on each bigha (40 decimals) of land while they have been selling the mature ones at Tk 1.20 lakh to 1.30 lakh including the cost for tender plant, fertilizer, irrigation water, day labourer and land lease in a season. Those who have own irrigation machine, saves the production cost, they said.
A source related to the office of the Deputy Director of DAE in Jhenaidah office said, the farmers had produced 123,190 tones of banana on 4,915 hectares of land in the Kharip-1 season. Average yield of the fruit on each hectare was 30 tones, they said.
They said the DAE had set target to produce 149,413 tones of banana on 4,915 hectares of land in the season where they were expecting 29.82 tones from each hectares of land in the season. Upazila wise break up banana framing was 1,175 hectares in Jhenaidah Sadar, 25 hectares in Kaliganj, 300 hectares in Kotchandpur, 1,370 hectares in bordering Moheshpur, 1,215 hectares in Shailkupa and remaining 830 hectares in Harinakundu.
Deputy Director (DD) of the DAE in Khamarbari in Jhenaidah Asgar Ali when contacted said the banana farmers throughout the district were benefited when the fruit season was over in mid-July. The area of banana framing might expand in the next season when the farmers were receiving better from yield and price both round the year. They had advised the staff in the filed level to assist their all-out cooperation to the farmers so that they could produce the crop using modern technology, machineries and input. It has been helping the farmers to meet their nutrition aspects round the year with their own fruits.
Further, the major portion of the fruit produced in Jhenaidah, is taken to Dhaka, Chattagram, Cumilla, Barishal and some other parts of the country, playing role in strengthening their socio-economic base as the fruit was grown round the year, DAE Jhenaidah Deputy Director said.