The farmers in six Jhenaidah upazilas have completed the harvesting of their 45 percent of wheat in the current season, while the remaining is expected to be harvested by the first week of April, said the farmers and the officials of the department of agriculture extension (DAE) in Jhenaidah.
Better prices of the food grains including the cereal crop wheat have brought smiles on the faces of the farmers in the season.
A number of farmers at Habibpur village of Shailkupa municipality and Kalicharanpur village of Jhenaidah Sadar upazila said that their crops grew better as there was no major attack of pests and diseases in the season and the climate was almost favorable during the season.
Each maund of 40 kilograms of wheat is now sold at Taka 1,750 to 1,800 compared to the Taka 1,200 last season.
Farmers expressed happiness for the better price.
Some of the farmers said they had reduced potato and sweet potato farming area and increased the wheat farming in the current season as they have been receiving better prices from the cereal foodgrain. A number of farmers in the area have been doing the same in the season, they added.
Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) Jhenaidah Khamarbari office sources said that a total of 5,173 hectares of lands have been cultivated wheat this year, compared with 4,278 hectares of lands during the last season.
Around 20,536 tons of wheat is expected to produce in the season in Jhenaidah at the rate of 3.97 tons in each hectare on an average, said the office sources of the department of agriculture extension (DAE) in Jhenaidah.
The farmers in the district had so far harvested 45 percent of the crop and expected to harvest the remaining portion within the first week of the next month if there are no natural calamities.
Wheat farming was gradually expanding in Jhenaidah district when the farmers were reaping better from the wheat and the land under potato, sweet potato and vegetables was reducing in recent times.
DAE deputy director’s office sources said they had set a target to cultivate wheat on 5,136 hectares of land in the district during the season. The farmers of Jhenaidah Sadar upazila brought 790 hectares, Kaliganj farmers brought 325 hectares, Kotchandpur farmers brought 130 hectares, Moheshpur farmers brought 820 hectares, maximum wheat producing upazila Shailkupa farmers brought 2,810 790 hectares and Harinakundu farmers brought 2,810 hectares, while least wheat producing upazila Harinakundu farmers had brought 309 hectares of land in the season. They had produced 16,715 tons of wheat on 4,278 hectares of land last season.
Farmer Abdul Barik of Jhaudia Ashrayan project area in Shailkupa municipality of Jhenaidah said that he brought 110 decimals of land under wheat farming in the season compared with 90 decimals during the last season.
Better prices of wheat has encouraged him to reduce the farming of vegetables in the season. He hopes eight maunds of wheat per bigha of the land in the season, Abdul Barik said.
DAE deputy director at Khamarbari Jhenaidah Asgar Ali said, “The farmers in Jhenaidah are very much aware about their benefit of crops and care for it. The DAE officials have been standing by the farmers and providing information and modern technical assistance for better crop production and preservation to make the farming profitable.”
More 4104 hector of lands in Jashore, Jhenaidah, Magura, Kushtia, Chuadanga and Meherpur district have been cultivated wheat this year.
Jashore Department of Agriculture Extension sources told BSS recently that wheat has been cultivated on 13654 hectares of land in Kushtia, 12775 hectares in Meherpur, 5210 hectares in Magura, 5173 hectares in Jhenaidah, 1700 hectares in Chudanga and 624 hectares of land in Jashore district.
