Rangpur Correspondent

The government has fixed an all-time record target of producing 9,61,070 tonnes of winter vegetables from 1,08,065 hectares of land for farmers of Rangpur agriculture region during this Rabi season.

Officials of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) said a production target of 9,48,360 tonnes of winter vegetables was fixed from 38,350 hectares of land for the region during the last Rabi season.

Meanwhile, the government has already taken sufficient steps like distribution of special incentives, high quality seeds and fertilisers among farmers to make the winter vegetables farming programme successful this season.

The DAE, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute, Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture, Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation and other organisations are supplying quality seeds, agri-inputs and providing technical assistance to farmers.

The commercial banks including Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank and some NGOs are disbursing easy-term agriculture loans among farmers to make the winter vegetable farming programme a success.

Additional Director of the DAE for Rangpur region Agriculturist Mohammad Shah Alam said farmers are showing keen interest in farming winter vegetables on more land area after getting repeated bumper productions with fair prices in recent years.

Farmers are continuing cultivation of winter vegetables and have already sowed seeds on over 11,970 hectares of land after harvesting short duration Aman rice.

"Farming of winter vegetables will get further momentum soon when harvest of the traditional varieties of Aman rice will continue in full swing from next week," Alam said.

Deputy Director (Leave Reserved) of the DAE at Khamarbari in Dhaka Abu Sayem said farmers are expected to bring more lands in both the mainland and char areas under cultivation of winter vegetables this season in Rangpur region.
Many farmers started farming winter vegetables soon after the recession of floodwater from their submerged croplands in the low-lying and char areas from the first week of September in all five districts of the region.

Besides, farmers are also cultivating winter vegetables after harvesting short duration varieties of Aman rice from the first week of the last month.

"As a result, early varieties of winter vegetables have already started appearing in local markets following early cultivation of those by farmers adopting newer cropping patterns evolved in accordance with changing climatic conditions," Sayem said.

Flood-hit farmers Abdur Rahim and Saiful Islam of village Satvita and Abu Bakker and Nur Mohammad of village Noyagram in Kurigram said they have started harvesting early varieties of winter vegetables they cultivated after recession of floodwater.

Farmers Akmal Hossain, Abdus Sattar, Azizar Rahman and Narayan Chandra of village Bhimpur in Rangpur said they have already sowed seeds of winter vegetables after harvesting short duration varieties of Aman rice.

Deputy Director of the DAE for Rangpur region Md. Mahbubar Rahman said farmers are cultivating winter vegetables on their croplands and homesteads responding to the call of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to bring every inch of land under crop cultivation.

"The DAE has taken special steps to inspire people in cultivating vegetables and other crops on croplands, fallow lands and homesteads to enhance crop production amid the global crises caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and Russia-Ukraine War," he said.