CUMILLA, Apr 04: Crops will be cultivated on 12,000 acres of agricultural land this year on Payater Beel of Burichang Upazila of Cumilla. These agricultural lands have remained fallow due to waterlogging for the last 20 years.
Recently a canal has been dug in the area at the initiative of Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation (BADC).
According to local sources, Payater Beel covers a large part of Sadar, Bakshimul, Sholanol and Rajapur unions of Burichang upazila of Cumilla district. Due to waterlogging in the Payater Beel, cultivation on agricultural lands in these areas have been a problem for the last twenty years. The canals of Ghunghur and Pagli rivers in Payater Beel were illegally occupied and unplanned structures were constructed in different areas. The canals almost disappeared. Due to the lack of proper drainage system, the water of this Beel could not flow over the area.
As a result, 12,000 acres of arable land in Payater Beel became waterlogged. Its direct victims are more than 5000 farming families. Payater Beel farmers could not cultivate Aman paddy. Some farmers planted Boro paddy but could not take it home due to early rains. About 25-kilometer canal is being re-excavated around the Payater Beel in response to public demand earlier this year.
Going to the spot, it can be seen that the farmers are very happy that the canal has been dug in Payater Beel. They have started cultivating on agricultural land. For the last twenty years many have not been able to cultivate the agricultural land of this Beel. The farmers demanded that the entire canal be dug within a short time.
Gias Uddin of the local Haripur village said that due to prolonged waterlogging, the infestation of leeches has increased in the land of Payater Beel on the one hand, and on the other hand weeds have turned it into grazing land. As a result of excavating the canal, smiles have appeared on the faces of the people of the area.
Farid Uddin, a freedom fighter from Kharaitaiya village, said that in order to completely eliminate waterlogging, small and big canals around Payater Beel would have to be re-excavated for another ten kilometers. Besides, "I am demanding construction of small and medium sized bridges in the dug canals to transport the crops produced by the farmers.
Md. Manik Mia, Deputy Assistant Engineer, Small Irrigation, Burichang Unit, said, "I have been working in this area for a long time. I have seen the suffering of the people.. Now people have benefited from digging canals. It's good to see people's happiness.
Alal Uddin, Assistant Engineer, BADC's Cumilla, Chandpur, Brahmanbaria District Irrigation Area Development Project, said 30,000 metric tonnes of crops would be produced from the agricultural land in Payater Beel. There are many agricultural lands in this Beel, on which crops can be produced three times a year.
Engineer Mohammad Mizanur Rahman, Project Director, Canal Excavation Project, said, "Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture of the Agriculture Friendly Government has taken various landmark initiatives in the interest of agriculture and farmers of the country. Even in the midst of the global epidemic of coronavirus, the country is gaining self-sufficiency in food and is gaining worldwide acclaim.
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