Haimchar betel leaf farmers stare at losses

OUR CORRESPONDENT
CHANDPUR, Aug 31: Haimchar is a small sub-district in Chandpur located just beside the turbulent Meghna river and home to a population of about 300 thousand (three lakh) in about 49 thousand families in six unions.
Around 90 per cent areas of this sub-district are situated inside the Chandpur Irrigation Project's Flood Control Dam and resultantly the residents here are absolutely free from the curse of flood. They seldom see flooding.
Traditionally, Haimchar is famous for bumper yield of betel leaves and betel nuts.
Once the betel leaves used to be exported abroad too.
A survey shows a farmer here annually earns around Tk 7/8 lakh by selling betel leaves and betel nuts to the buyers. Most of the farmers maintain their families and bear educational expenses of their children by selling these two cash crops.
But this year, due to severe and prolonged waterlogging caused by the heavy downpour and incessant rainfalls for the past 8/9 days in Haimchar Upazila, innumerable betel leaf and betel nut cultivators are counting losses. Their betel leaf fields are under almost knee deep rainwater which is damaging the betel leaf vines. The betel leaves are yet to reach the stage of plucking. But finding no other alternative means, the betel leaf growers are bound to pluck the immature betel leaves well ahead of time from their fields to avoid further loss.
According to Haimchar UZ Agriculture Officer Shakil Khandaker, a total of 119 hectares of land have been brought under betel leaf cultivation here this season.
Gondamara, Dakhshin and Uttar Alghi, Krish-napur, Bajapti, Dheler Char, Mohojampur, Janata Bazar, Royer Bazar are the major betel leaf producing areas in Haimchar.
There are over 1200 betel leaf and betel nut farmers in this area.
Shakil Khandaker says, "Due to excessive rainfalls for the past few days, betel leaf fields on around 100 hectares of land have been immensely affected."
The growers are worried about the business prospect as most of them had taken loans from banks and NGOs for cultivating betel leaves. Excessive rainfalls dashed their hopes, said many affected farmers. They are now worried about how to pay back their loan money.
During a visit this correspondent found on Wednesday that the farmers could not drain out water from their lands as heavy rainfall were filling their fields again and again. It was observed that water was flowing to the nearby canals very slowly from their fields. So, the betel leaf plants' roots were rotting.
They were helpless to rains, said betel leaf cultivators Hena Akter, Abu Taher, Shafiqur Rahman and a few others of Mohojompur village.
They said they had invested several lakh taka for the betel leaf fields. But now they are left hopeless by natural calamities. They never faced such a dreadful situation in the past 30 years.
Abu Taher said he had cultivated betel leaves on 40 decimals of land and invested around Tk 1.0 million (10 lakh) for reaping bumper betel leaf yield.
Enterprising housewife Hena Akter said she had also invested a similar amount of money for betel leaf cultivation adjacent to or beside her home.
Shafiqur Rahman has told the FE he has invested about Tk 300 thousand (three lakh) for betel leaf cultivation in fields.
Alghi Uttar's Shahjahan and Shahidullah, both betel leaf growers, have told the same sad tale of loss making due to excessive rainfall.
Many small betel leaf vendors are selling immature betel leaves sitting beside the roads and in front of many roadside shops in Haimchar.
Talking to the FE, Kader Bepari (55), a veteran betel leaf trader of Haimchar, has said if the betel leaves are mature, one bundle was sold usually at Tk 80-100. But now the immature betel leaves are sold at Tk 30-35 per bundle.
When contacted, Shakil Khandaker has said a total of 119 hectares of land have been brought under betel leaf cultivation. Betel leaf fields on around 100 hectares are seriously affected by prolonged waterlogging. As a result, about 1100 betel leaf farmers are badly affected.
On the other hand, Krishibid Mobarak Hossain at the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) in the district has told the FE, "The affected (1100) farmers are suffering losses approximately to the tune of Tk 40 million (4 crore) from their yield on 100 hectares as per government rate."
Shakil Khandaker has, however, said, "We are preparing a list of the affected betel leaf farmers and writing to the government for granting aids/incentives for them as compensation to recoup their loss. When the incentive money will be granted, these affected betel leaf farmers will get preference.''
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