DAE targets 14,500 tonnes of jackfruit output in Panchagarh

PANCHAGARH, May 13 (BSS): A bumper jackfruit production is expected in the district as the tender fruit is now growing excellent amid favourable climate condition this season, officials said on Sunday.
A dramatic turn has taken place in farming the juicy fruit as hundreds of farmers here have become financially solvent by selling it recent years.
The Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) officials here said a total of 1200 hectares of land have been brought under jackfruit cultivation this year with fixing a production target of 14,500 tonnes in all five upazilas of the district.
Malek, a jackfruit grower of Bodapara village under Debiganj upazila, said he is expecting a bumper yield of jackfruit from his one acre orchard with getting Tk 80,000.
Jackfruit wholesalers from different parts of the country have started flocking to the area as the harvesting season is approaching.
"There are 200 jackfruit trees in my orchard. The production rate is higher than that of last year," said another farmer Motiar Rahman of Debiganj upazila.
Jackfruit farming is gradually gaining popularity in the district, said Sumchul Huque, deputy director of DAE, Panchagarh. "We are inspiring growers to cultivate jackfruit by giving technical support," he said.