RAJSHAHI, Jan 13, 2020 (BSS)- Around 1.30 lakh tonnes of pulse crops are
expected to be produced from 94,979 hectares of land in all eight districts
under Rajshahi division during the current season.
Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) has set the production target of
pulses like lentils, grass-pea, chickpea, pea (motorshuti), winter mug-bean
and pigeon-pea and has already adopted all possible measures to meet up the
existing demand of pulses through attaining the production target.
The DAE has set the target of producing 85,011 tonnes of lentil from 60,515
hectares of land, 37,372 tonnes of grass-pea from 27,917 hectares, 3,224
tonnes of chickpea from 2,553 hectares, 4,899 tonnes of peas from 3,861
hectares, 118 tonnes of pigeon pea from 106 hectares and 38 tonnes of winter
mug-bean from 27 hectares of land.
Shamsul Haque, Deputy Director of DAE, said the growers here are showing
more interest in lentil cultivation as it does not take much irrigation cost.
Besides, they got abundant production in the last few years.
“We are cultivating lentil to avoid hassle in getting irrigation water
for paddy,” said Azizul Islam, a farmer of Rajabari village under Godagari
Upazila. He mentioned that acreage of lentil is increasing day by day.
Islam said he has cultivated lentil on three-bigha of land this year
without spending extra money for irrigation.
A farmer can get four to five maunds of lentil from per bigha of land. One
maund of lentil is now being sold at Tk 4,000 to 4,300 in local markets, he
said.
Prospect of boosting both acreage and yield of different varieties of
pulses in the region, including its vast Barind tract is seen bright as
suitable topography and climatic condition prevails.
To materialize the existing prospects, more need-oriented measures should
be adopted to boost the farmers level pulse yield to meet up the domestic
requirement.
Agriculturist Abu Muhammad Musha revealed that the region is a unique site
for expansion of pulse farming particularly the mash kalai, grams, chickpea,
pea and lentil.
He said the pulse especially lentil is the vial source of calcium, iron and
vitamin-B and C and it plays a vital role to build human body.
Emphasis should be given on habituating the farmers with the modern
cultivation method along with using quality seed through establishing
projection plot of improved technologies for enhancing pulse output.
Abu Musha, former chief scientific officer of Bangladesh Agriculture
Research Institute, mentioned that the pulse farming could add at least 20-60
kilograms atmospheric nitrogen to per hectare of land supplementing flourish
soil productivity to the subsequent crop.
Farmers of Rajshahi, Natore, Pabna, Joypurhat and part of some other
adjacent districts have explored a new dimension in motorshuti production as
they earn bulk of money after harvesting the cash crop for the last couple of
years.
Many other people like businessmen and day labours especially females are
also making money from the motorshuti farming.