Around 6.60 lakh tonnes of mustard seeds are expected to be harvested from around 4.05 lakh hectares of land in all eight districts under Rajshahi division during the current Rabi season.
The Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) has set a target of producing 3.13 lakh tonnes of mustard seeds from 1.92 lakh hectares of land in four districts of Rajshahi Agricultue Zone, while another 3.46 lakh tonnes from 2.12 lakh hectares of land in four other districts of Bogura Agriculture Zone.
At present, entire farming fields have started turning yellowish, creating an eye-catching look. DAE's different initiatives and favourable climate conditions in the region during this Rabi season becomes a boon for mustard plants to grow well, predicting bumper productions.
Shamsul Wadud, Additional Director of DAE, said each of all the small and marginalised farmers were given one kilogram of high yielding mustard seeds and ten kilograms each of dominium phosphate and murret of potash fertilizers free of cost for cultivating mustard in the division under the government's agriculture incentive programme.
In addition to the DAE, various other research and development organisations like Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute (BARI) and many NGOs have taken adequate measures in collaboration with other departments this season to achieve the fixed production targets.
The agri-departments and NGOs have already provided quality seeds, necessary inputs and training on the latest technologies to the farmers.
The landless and marginal farmers have also brought vast tracts of the sandy char lands under mustard cultivation this time in the Ganges basins and the crops are growing excellent everywhere in the region.
Anisuzzaman Dollar, 35, a farmer of Golai village under Godagari Upazila, has brought six bighas of land under the oilseed cultivation in the current season. He had harvested 24 maunds of yield from four bighas of land in the previous year.
Another farmer of Dhamila village Monirul Islam, 45, has cultivated mustard on 11 bighas of land this season after attaining 30 mounds of yield from five bigha of lands in the previous season.
Abdul Mazid, 35, of Nandigram village under Durgapur Upazila, said he had cultivated mustard seed on two bighas of land last year and received yield of six msunds per bigha.
He has brought three bighas of land under the cash crop farming this season and is expecting good yield.
Rashidul Hassan, 45, another farmer of Kakonhat village, has become successful through cultivating the cash crop for the last couple of years.
This year, he cultivated the crop on four bighas of land.
Upazila Agriculture Officer Mariam Ahmed mentioned that the government has attached highest priority to the agriculture sector and added that the field level officials and researchers have taken the responsibilities of reaching the government's services to the farmers' doorsteps.
She said the farmers are seen expanding farming of high yielding varieties of mustard on a larger scale to get desired output to supplement government initiatives to ensure food security.
Mariam Ahmed opined that the government under the dynamic and visionary leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina achieved food security as a result of providing the latest agri-technologies innovated by the agri-scientists besides ensuring adequate supply of fertilizers, pesticides and other agri-inputs to the farmers.
The On Farm Research Division (OFRD) of BARI has been working to make crop farming profitable through extension of its improved variety and improved management in the Barind area.
BARI has released 16 high yielding mustard seed varieties and two of those- BARI Sharisha-15 and Tari-7 have become popular in the growers' level of the region.
Dr Jagadish Chandra Barman, Principal Scientific Officer of OFRD (Barind Centre), said more than 100 farmers were given improved varieties of mustard seeds and fertilizer for farming on around 120 bighas of land in Rajshahi, Chapainawabganj and Naogaon districts during the current season.
He said mustard seed is a water-saving crop and its expansion in the Barind area is very important towards lessening the gradually mounting pressure on its underground water.
