Farmers in Netrakona have started harvesting and threshing early varieties of Transplanted Aman (T-Aman) paddy. They are happy with good yields and higher prices this year.
At present, they are harvesting early varieties of T-Aman crop such as Dhani Gold, BRRI Dhan-71 and 75, and BINA-16 and 17. However, due to the recent floods in October, there is concern that the production target may not be achieved.
According to Department of Agricultural Extension, Aman paddy was cultivated on 135,900 hectares of land in the district this year, which is 760 hectares more than the cultivation target. However, recent floods completely damaged T-Aman crop in 24,667 hectares of land.
Farmers said that the yield has been relatively good this year. They are selling paddy at prices ranging from Tk 1,200 to Tk 1,300 per maund. Although Aman paddy in low-lying areas was damaged by the floods, farmers in higher areas are happy with better yields and higher prices. By harvesting early varieties of paddy, they will be able to cultivate additional crops like mustard, potatoes, and various winter vegetables on the same land. As a result, the cultivation of early variety of T-Aman is increasing in the district every year.
Jewel Rana, a farmer from Netrakona sadar, said, I planted BR-50 paddy on 3.3 decimal of land. The yield has been fairly good. However, some of the paddy was damaged due to waterlogging. But if we farmers can sell paddy at Tk 1,300 to Tk 1,400 per maund, we will be able to make profit. Prices of everything in the market are rising beyond people's reach. If the price of paddy is a bit better, we farmers will be able to earn profit.
Shantu Mia, a farmer from Dakkhin Bishiwara village in sadar upazila, said, we plant BINA-17 paddy because it can be harvested a bit earlier, allowing us to cultivate another crop afterward. However, due to floodwaters this year, the yield has been slightly lower. Paddy prices in the market are between Tk 1,300 to Tk 1,400 Taka. We will be happy if the price continues like this.
The Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) said that there were no pest or disease attacks on the paddy this year. Additionally, the farmers could apply balanced amounts of fertilizer to their fields due to a good supply of fertilizers at the farmer level, resulting in better yields. Since the yield has been good this year, and cultivation exceeded the target, it is expected that the production will be close to the target.
Mohammad Nuruzzaman, Deputy Director of the Netrokona DAE, said, this year, the target was set to cultivate T-Aman on 135,140 hectares in Netrokona district, and the paddy was cultivated on an extra 760 hectares of land, surpassing than the target. However, in early October, flash floods and excessive rainfall affected the T-Aman crop in our district. As a result, crops on 24,667 hectares of land were completely damaged. In response, we have tried to expand the cultivation of short-duration and high-yielding varieties of T-Aman paddy at the field level. The cultivation of these varieties have been significantly expanded in Netrokona district. Our target is to encourage farmers to cultivate mustard after harvesting the short-duration T-Aman varieties, filling the gap before Boro cultivation. We have undertaken this initiative to motivate them.
Mohammad Nuruzzaman added, we have suffered a lot of damage due to the floods. Our target was to produce 413,457 metric tonnes of rice. Netrokona district produces much more rice than its food grain demand. The district produces 2.5 times more food grains than its requirement, resulting in a surplus of about 700,000 metric tonnes of rice. Despite the crop losses caused by the floods, there will be no food shortage in the district. Since we have had good yields this year and cultivated T-Aman on an extra 760 hectares of land, which is more than the target, we are hopeful that we will achieve very close to our target. There is an opportunity to mitigate much of the loss caused by the floods.
