GOPALGANJ, Jan 26: Cultivation of BARI mustard varieties 14, 15 and 17, along with BINA mustard 9 and 11, has created new hope among farmers in Gopalganj Sadar and Tungipara upazilas of the district this year.
Sources at the upazila agriculture offices said a total of 1,588 hectares of land in Gopalganj Sadar and 373 hectares in Tungipara have been brought under mustard cultivation during the current season. The combined production target for the two upazilas is 2,942 tonnes, involving about 9,800 farmers. Of them, around 1,000 farmers in Gopalganj Sadar and 600 in Tungipara received seeds and fertilisers as incentives from the agriculture office.
Each farmer received one kilogram of mustard seed, 10 kilograms of DAP fertiliser and 10 kilograms of MOP fertiliser, the sources added.
Rabin Mondal (50), a mustard farmer of Senerchar village under Tungipara upazila, said he cultivated BARI-14 mustard on 100 decimals of land. "The crop condition is satisfactory. If the weather remains favourable, I expect to harvest about 14.5 mounds of mustard," he said.
Md Rakibul Islam, Upazila Agriculture Officer (UAO) of Tungipara, said 373 hectares of land across five unions of the upazila have been brought under mustard cultivation with a production target of 550 tonnes. About 1,865 farmers are involved in mustard farming there.
He added that the production cost is around Tk 8,000 per bigha, while farmers may earn about Tk 18,000 after harvest. "We expect farmers to make a net profit of around Tk 10,000 per bigha," he said.
Faruk Sheikh (45), a farmer from Singipara village of Tungipara upazila, said he cultivated mustard on 75 decimals of land this year. "My production cost was Tk 18,000, and I expect to harvest about 11 mounds of mustard. If the climate remains favourable, the market value may reach around Tk 38,500, considering the current price of Tk 3,500 per mound (40 kg)," he said.
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