Sericulture project in CHT bears all signs of neglect
Plantations of mulberry trees under Chittagong Hill Tracts Sericulture Project remain neglected due to authorities' failure to provide growers with necessary support as per agreement. Inset, only a few trees in a mulberry plantation in Rangamati district have survived as growers, facing losses in the venture, are cutting down the trees. Photo: STAR
Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) Sericulture Project saw no remarkable progress in last five years although a huge amount of government fund has been spent for the purpose. Funded by ministries of textile and jute and CHT affairs, Bangladesh Sericulture Board (BSB) is implementing the Tk 5 crore project for sericulture extension in Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachhari hill districts. But manpower shortage, lack of monitoring by project officials and mismanagement are the major obstacles on the way to success of the project, local sources said. The three-year project was launched in 2005-2006 financial year and later extended for two more years. A total of Tk 3 crore has already been spent and Tk 2 crore more has been allocated for extension of the project, official sources said. Under the project, a regional office staffed with only five persons was set up in Rangamati. Three centres, one in each hill district, and 12 sub-centres, four in each district, and a 'reeling centre' in Lama of Bandarban were set up, BSB sources said. With a manager at each centre and only a demonstrator at each sub-centre, there has not been any significant progress of the project. Some two lakh mulberry saplings were distributed among 1,000 farmers in three districts. Silkworms that make silk eat the leaves of mulberry trees. Only 3,500 kilograms of cocoons worth Tk 5 lakh were produced through rearing 16,000 silkworms while 77 kg of silk yarn is the only outcome of the project during the last three years. A kg of silk yarn is now selling at Tk 1,500 in the local market. During a recent visit to different project sites at Hajaribagh, Balukhali, Udandi Adam, Vedvedi, Rangapani and Deppoyachhari, this correspondent found only a few mulberry trees at a site. Farmers have cut down their mulberry trees while there is hardly any supervision by project officials. Growers said as per conditions they were to get of giving cash money for planting mulberry saplings, 5 kg of fertiliser and five or six days training to them but project officials have cheated them. Even most of the growers did not get the price of cocoons they got from their garden, they alleged. “I got five kg cocoons by rearing silkworms in my mulberry garden. But the project officials did not pay me the price. So I have lost interest in the work,” said Minu Chakma, a grower at Udandi Adam of Vedvedi. Bimoleni Chakma, another farmer, said she got 1,300 pieces of cocoons from her mulberry garden but the officials gave her only Tk 300 as price. “Project officials gave 200 mulberry saplings to each family. But they did not provide any financial support. They gave us one day training and took signatures on blank papers,” said Mili Chakma, a grower at Rangapani. About 20,000 saplings were given to 75 households at Deppoyachhari village in 2008. But not a single farmer is rearing silkworm now as the officials gave them nothing except saplings and did not even visit the area later, locals said. “Officials encouraged us to grow silk yarn by planting mulberry saplings. I worked hard but the officials did not provide me any financial support,” said Somiran Chakma at Deppoyachhari. Bhala Ram Chakma, Subal Moni Chakma, Sadhan Chakma and Shanti Chakma also echoed the same. BSB Chairman Sunil Kanti Das said, "It will take time for production of cocoon and silk yarn as mulberry tree takes at least three years for sprout of leaves. I will see if there has been any irregularity by the staff." Kanchan Baran Das, project director of sericulture extension project, said more manpower is needed for the purpose and the task would be easier if the project was implemented through an NGO.
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