The New Nation - Internet Edition

BSS, Rangpur

The vast tract of growing wheat fields have worn greenish eye-catching looks everywhere in northern districts of the country amid favourable climatic condition predicting a bumper production this season.

The enthusiastic farmers, who got a bumper production and fair price of the crop last season, are now properly irrigating and taking care of the growing tender wheat plants to achieve another bumper production.

The Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) has fixed a target of producing 6,21,790 tonnes wheat from 2,39,150 hectares land during this rabi season in the region, officials said here today.

The fixed target is 32 percent higher than that of the previous season when the production target was fixed at 4,69,220 tonnes of wheat from 2,22,962 hectares of land the farmers achieved the target for the first time after a decade in the region.

This year's target has been fixed considering the success of the previous season and growing interest among the farmers for wheat cultivation and to increase production of the major crops for ensuring food security in the country, they added.

The DAE, the Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation, the Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute and a number of NGOs have taken special steps to make the programme a success.

The fixed targets for producing the wheat in the region could not be achieved during the previous ten consecutive seasons except the last season due to various reasons, including diversification of crop farming and less interest of farmers.

Farmers are hopeful to achieve the fixed target this season as they are showing more interests in wheat farming after getting its bumper production and fair prices of up to Taka 1,300 per every 40-kg maund last season.

Besides, adequate trainings on the latest wheat farming technologies and high quality and hybrid variety wheat seeds have been provided to the farmers for increasing farming of the crop this season, the DAE officials said.