Farmers, both in the mainland and char areas, are happy getting bumper production of groundnut with lucrative market price during the just-ended Rabi season in Rangpur agriculture region.
Officials of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) and market sources said farmers are earning average profit of Taka 40,000 by producing 25 to 28 mounds of groundnut per acre of land excluding farming costs of Taka 20,000 per acre.
“Farmers are selling newly harvested groundnuts to wholesalers at rates between Taka 2,800 to 3,000 per mound (every 40-kg) now,” groundnut trader Mokhlesur Rahman at Rangpur City Bazar told BSS.
The DAE had fixed a target of producing 12,161 tonnes of groundnut from 6,160 hectares of land of all five districts in the region this time,” said Agriculturist Bibhubhushan Roy, Rangpur Regional Additional Director of the DAE.
“However, the growers finally cultivated groundnut on 5,758 hectares of land, less by only 402 hectares of land against the fixed farming target this time,” Roy said.
The farmers finally produced 11,087 tonnes of groundnut, less by 1,084 tonnes of the cash crop against the fixed production target, in Rangpur, Gaibandha, Lalmonirhat, Kurigram and Nilphamari districts of the region.
They got bumper groundnut production following expanded cultivation of its high yielding varieties evolved by Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute (BARI) on more land.
With the increasing demand of groundnut in the Bakery and Confectionery industries and export of the products, farmers are increasing groundnut cultivation on the main lands and char areas after getting repeated bumper production with lucrative prices.
Because of lower farming cost and excellent market price with huge demand, char people and farmers are reaping huge profits from groundnut cultivation in the last 12 years here.
Talking to BSS, Senior Coordinator (Agriculture and Environment) of RDRS Bangladesh Agriculturist Mamunur Rashid said farmers can earn Taka 40,000 by producing 24 to 27 mounds of groundnut per acre of land spending Taka 20,000 as farming costs per acre.
“Cultivation of groundnut has become a profitable venture during the last 12 years following a huge boost of the confectionary and Bakery industries increasing demands of the locally produced agro-commodity,” he added.
Talking to BSS, a number of farmers of Char Arazi Hariswar, Gupidanga, Prannath Char, Char Najirdaho, Char Pollimari, Char Godair, Char Gonai, Char Haricharan, Dhushmarar Char, Tapur Char, Char Hazrat Khan, Char Biswa Nath and other char villages under Kawnia upazila in Rangpur expressed happiness over bumper yield of groundnut.
Farmer Nur Mohammad of Char Biswa Nath village on the Teesta riverbed said he has cultivated groundnut on 50 decimals of land this season, spending Taka 10,000.
“I got a production of 14 mounds of groundnut after completing its harvest recently,” he said, hoping that he would earn a net profit of Taka 20,000 this season.
Similarly, farmers Saiduzzaman, Selim Hossain and Abul Hashem of the same village said they have achieved bumper groundnut output during the just-ended Rabi season.
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