Aman cultivation hampered due to fertiliser crisis
Monday, 21 July 2008
PABNA, July 20 (UNB): The cultivation of Aman paddy was being hampered in the district due to fertiliser crisis.
Sources said farmers need 6,000 tonnes of TSP and 3,000 tonnes of Potash fertilisers in the current season for cultivating Aman but no fertiliser was allocated for the district in the last two months.
As farmers achieved bumper Boro production last season they have taken preparation to bring more land under Aman cultivation this season.
Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) sources said a scheme had been taken up to bring some 46,300 hectares of land under Aman cultivation in the current season in all the nine upazilas with an output target of 0.11 million tonnes of paddy.
Although the farmers have prepared the land but the cultivation was facing setback due to shortage of Potash and TSP fertilisers.
DAE officials said NPKS mixed fertiliser is now available in the market, which farmers could use as alternative to Potash and TSP.
But farmers seem reluctant to buy NPKS fertiliser as most of them don't know how to use of the fertiliser.
Jalaluddin, a farmer of Char Ramchandrapur village under Sadar Uapzila, said he prepared eight bighas of land but could not plant paddy for lack of Potash and TSP fertilisers.
A DAE official told the news agency that NPKS fertiliser was prepared mixing Urea, TSP and Potash fertilisers and this type of fertiliser could easily be used instead of Potash and TSP.
Sources said farmers need 6,000 tonnes of TSP and 3,000 tonnes of Potash fertilisers in the current season for cultivating Aman but no fertiliser was allocated for the district in the last two months.
As farmers achieved bumper Boro production last season they have taken preparation to bring more land under Aman cultivation this season.
Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) sources said a scheme had been taken up to bring some 46,300 hectares of land under Aman cultivation in the current season in all the nine upazilas with an output target of 0.11 million tonnes of paddy.
Although the farmers have prepared the land but the cultivation was facing setback due to shortage of Potash and TSP fertilisers.
DAE officials said NPKS mixed fertiliser is now available in the market, which farmers could use as alternative to Potash and TSP.
But farmers seem reluctant to buy NPKS fertiliser as most of them don't know how to use of the fertiliser.
Jalaluddin, a farmer of Char Ramchandrapur village under Sadar Uapzila, said he prepared eight bighas of land but could not plant paddy for lack of Potash and TSP fertilisers.
A DAE official told the news agency that NPKS fertiliser was prepared mixing Urea, TSP and Potash fertilisers and this type of fertiliser could easily be used instead of Potash and TSP.