Harvesting of potato has been going on everywhere in four Upazilas of Chuadanga district from December 25, 2022. Farmers have been getting lucrative prices selling the produced potato.
It may be mentioned that the farmers sowed the seeds of potato in their fields from October 10 to October 20, 2022. They have been harvesting potato from December 25, 2022 and harvesting of potato will be ended on March 5 this year.
Official data showed the target of producing 43,700 metric tonnes of potato has been set from 2,300 hectares of land in four Upazilas of Chuadanga district. But 2150 hectares of land has been taken under potato cultivation on October 20, 2022. District Agriculture Extension Department is expected to be produced 40,850 metric tonnes of potato from the said land.
According to District Agriculture Extension Department, about 350 hectares of land have been taken under potato cultivation in Sadar Upazila, 391 hectares of land in Alamdanga Upazila, 310 hectares of land in Damurhuda Upazila and 1099 hectares of land in Jibannagar Upazila. Farmers and Agriculture Department are expected to be produced 6650 metric tons of potato in Sadar Upazila, 7429 metric tons of potato in Alamdanga Upazila, 5890 metric tons of potato in Damurhuda Upazila and 20,881 metric tons of potato in Jibannagar Upazila from the Upazila wise land.
Most of farmers have started harvesting and marketing all varieties of potato from December 25, 2022. The newly harvested potatoes are appearing in the local wholesale and retail markers with lucrative prices, said Abdur Razzak, a farmer of village Khadimpur in Alamdanga Upazila.
Sohel Ahmed of village Garabaria in Sadar Upazila of the district said, production cost of potato per bigha is about tk. 30,000. Over 67 mounds of potato is produced each bigha of land. At present wholesale rate of potato per mound is tk. 800.
Chitto Ronjon Saha Chitu, an inhabitant of Sheikhpara in Chuadanga town told this correspondent, he bought one kilo gram of potato from a retailor of Nicher Kacha Bazaar in the town at tk. 25. Rana, a vegetable vender through rickshaw van of the town told the Bangladesh Post, he is selling potato at tk. 25 per kg. The wholesalers are selling potato at tk. 22 per kg on January 11.
The Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) has taken all sorts of supports to the farmers for better production of potato, said Bevash Chandra Saha, Deputy Director of the DAE.
He also said the field level officials, experts and other organizations concerned have been providing necessary instructions to the farmers to make their upcoming farming a total success.
