Hundreds of day labourers from different districts of north Bengal area have started arriving at different markets of Jhenaidah for selling their labour. They will be engaged in harvesting the ripen Boro paddy from the fields.
Although the labour charge was higher than past season, it will help harvest the paddy fast when the sky is signaling to be clouded within a few days.
Farmer Maniruddin of Ramchandrapur village of Jhenaidah Sadar when contacted at Halidhani Bazer in same upazila, said he hired four day labourers to harvest his Boro paddy. He will have to pay Taka 500 to each for everyday. Further, the will also have to manage their food during the harvesting days.
Farmer Subodh Biswas of Kola area in Kaliganj upazila said he hired three day labourers at the rate of Taka 525 a day for each. He will have to manage their foods also. The rate was about Taka 100 lest during the last season, the farmers said.
Amir Hossain, 35, of Bera upazila and Atiar Rahman of Belkuchi in Pabna waiting to sell their labour when asked, said most of the day labourers rush from Serajganj, Pabna, Natore and some other districts as the districts are almost poverty-stricken area.
They said huge farmers do not have enough work this time. To maintain their families they leave houses for work on croplands. These people also rush in Jhenaidah and surrounding areas in Aman, Aus and jute harvesting hours every year. A good number of day labourers from Khoksha, Kumarkhali and Kushtia Sadar upazila and Pangsha and Rajbari also appear during the time for working in crop fields, the farmers said.
Deputy Director of the department of agriculture extension (DAE) in Jhenaidah AsgarAli when contacted said the farmers face acute shortage of day labourers during the harvesting hours where the day labourers from some surrounding districts play role in the field work. Although the production cost increases here, the farmers are overall benefited from their services faster.
