The New Nation - Internet Edition

BSS, Rangpur

Prices of all variety of spices started declining as there is bumper production of the spicy crops in the northern region.

Farmers are getting excellent production as harvest of the crops begins. By now, the crops are available at the local markets in plenty, officials and market sources said.

A target for producing 7,09,407 tonnes of various kinds of spicy crops from 1,48,206 hectares of land was fixed, but the farmers brought more land than the target this time in the northern region, the sources said.

Targets were fixed for production of 3,81,720 tonnes of onion from 63,620 hectares of land, 1,83,557 tonnes of garlic from 33,374 hectares, 40,410 tonnes of pepper from 26,940 hectares, 60,609 tonnes of ginger from 5,009 hectares, 35,438 tonnes of turmeric from 13,125 hectares and 7,673 tonnes of coriander from 6,138 hectares in the northern region this season.

The crops have grown very well due to favourable climate this year, officials of the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) said here today. Departments concerned and some NGOs took special steps to increase production of all varieties of the spicy crops in all 16 northern districts during the current rabi season.

DAE sources said the steps taken included motivational campaign, supply of high-yielding varieties of seeds and extending technical assistance to the growers under various programmes.

Deputy Director of the DAE, Rangpur, Kamal Shariful Alam told BSS that there are bright prospects for increasing production of all variety spicy crops further in the region if the farmers are provided with an adequate quantity of high- yielding seeds.

The DAE, the Armed Forces, the Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute, the Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation and other organisations under the government's post flood agro- rehabilitation and other programmes distributed a huge quantity of quality seeds among the farmers this time.

Special steps were taken to encourage the farmers in increasing production of the spicy crops in their land, including homesteads, to achieve self-reliance in spices, the sources said.