Target of producing 9.55m tonnes winter vegetables fixed

FE Team | Published: November 17, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

RANGPUR, Nov 16 (BSS): The government has fixed an all-time record target of producing 9.55 million tonnes winter vegetables from 0.49 million hectares of land in the country during the current 2014-2015 Rabi season, official sources said.
The fixed national target of winter vegetables production for this season is higher by 0.95 million tonnes than the fixed target of producing 8.65 million tonnes from 0.44 million hectares land during the last Rabi season.
The departments and organisations concerned have been providing assistance to make the programme successful as the farmers are showing keen interests in farming winter vegetables after getting bumper production and more profit in recent years.
The DAE, Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute (BARI), Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation (BADC) and many NGOs have been providing quality seeds of the winter vegetables, inputs and necessary technical assistance to the farmers.
According to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) sources, a target of producing over 2.72 million tonnes of winter vegetables from over 0.13 million hectares of land has been fixed for the northern region during this season.
Meanwhile, the early variety winter vegetables have already appeared in local markets bringing smiles to the farmers with lucrative price, official and market sources said.
Horticulture Specialist of the DAE Khondker Md Mesbahul Islam said farmers have been cultivating winter vegetables after harvesting early and short duration variety Aman rice like BRRI dhan33, 56 and 57, BU dhan1, BINA dhan7 and others varieties.
"Farming of the winter vegetables will get full momentum when harvest of traditional variety Transplanted Aman rice will begin in full swing from the third week of November though harvest of early varieties continues now," he added.
Deputy Director of the DAE Zulfiquer Haider and Rangpur Sadar Upazila Agriculture Officer Afzal Hossain said some winter vegetables have appeared in local markets following early cultivation under newer cropping pattern amid changed climate.
According to markets sources, vegetables traders and middlemen have already started exporting the newly harvested early variety winter vegetables to Dhaka and other parts of the country by trucks from different points in the region.