Arum tubers perishing in fields for low price
Wednesday, 29 October 2008
Our Correspondent
RAJSHAHI, Oct 28: Arum tubers (kochu mukhi), a delicious vegetable procured from the tuber of an under ground Kochu plant, is being sold at Tk 3.00 (taka three) per kilogramme at markets in Godagari thana recently.
Due to the very low price, most of the Arum farmers are not harvesting the vegetable from their fields because they are not getting the return of the labour cost of harvesting. As a result, thousands of tonnes of arum tubers are now being destroyed in the farmers' fields.
Farmers of Char Asariadaha, Bhagabanpur, Naoshera, Babupur, Rajabari and Matikata villages informed, they are cultivating the Kochu fields without collecting the tubers from the soil because those were not worthy to sell in the market at a fair price.
Habibur, a farmer of Rajabari village brought 80 kilogramme of arum in Godagari haat. But he could not sell them for more than Tk 100 per maund (40 kilogrammes). He said, it took Tk 220 for harvesting, processing and carrying per maund of arum from the field to the sales centre.
Wholesale market sources, however, said the arum is being sold at Tk 200 per maund while the retailers are selling them from Tk 6.00 to Tk 7.00 per kilogramme.
RAJSHAHI, Oct 28: Arum tubers (kochu mukhi), a delicious vegetable procured from the tuber of an under ground Kochu plant, is being sold at Tk 3.00 (taka three) per kilogramme at markets in Godagari thana recently.
Due to the very low price, most of the Arum farmers are not harvesting the vegetable from their fields because they are not getting the return of the labour cost of harvesting. As a result, thousands of tonnes of arum tubers are now being destroyed in the farmers' fields.
Farmers of Char Asariadaha, Bhagabanpur, Naoshera, Babupur, Rajabari and Matikata villages informed, they are cultivating the Kochu fields without collecting the tubers from the soil because those were not worthy to sell in the market at a fair price.
Habibur, a farmer of Rajabari village brought 80 kilogramme of arum in Godagari haat. But he could not sell them for more than Tk 100 per maund (40 kilogrammes). He said, it took Tk 220 for harvesting, processing and carrying per maund of arum from the field to the sales centre.
Wholesale market sources, however, said the arum is being sold at Tk 200 per maund while the retailers are selling them from Tk 6.00 to Tk 7.00 per kilogramme.