Framers incur loss as Indian bean yields poor output
Untimely sowing, early sprout, pest attack cause the setback
Cultivation of 'Rupvan', an early variety Indian bean, has appeared as an unprofitable venture for over 10,000 farmers in eight upazilas of the district this year.
Sources at the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) office here said at least 10,000 growers in different unions will have to incur around Tk 60 crore loss because of poor yield caused by pest attack, spread of various diseases and discolouring of the vegetable.
They said the prices of the winter item declined sharply during the onset of the current harvesting season early this month.
Production of the Indian variety bean in the district this season will be 60 per cent less than the target, the district agriculture office sources said.
Farmers are being forced to sell their bean at nearly half the price that the vegetable fetched last year they said.
According to them, 4,600 hectares of land were brought under the cultivation of different varieties of bean, including locals and HYVs, of which Rupvan seeds, imported from India, was sowed in Atghoria, Ishwardi, Santhia, Sujanagar, Chatmohar, Faridpur, Bera and Sadar upazilas when the sowing season started nearly two months ago in Bangla month of Bhadra.
Of the land, about 1,250 hectares were brought under Rupvan bean cultivation at Rameshwarpur village in Majhpara union of Atgharia alone, deputy assistant agriculture officer of Atgharia upazila Abdur Rahman said.
He said that several hundred farmers of the village have been counting huge losses since the onset of the harvesting season because of poor yield.
The district agriculture officials said, farmers are incurring around Tk 1,20,000 loss per hectare and it will not be possible for them to recoup about half the production cost this year.
Local farmers said they bought Rupvan seed from seed dealers in Meherpur, Jessore, Kushtia and Jhenidah districts and sowed the same in their till land in the eight Pabna upazilas much earlier this year with the hope of making good profit from the early variety seed.
They were delighted as flowers grew in the plants earlier. But their delight turned into despair as the vegetable started to get rotten before the harvesting season.
"I cultivated Rupvan on one hectare by investing the money borrowed from a non-government organization (NGO). All the money went down the drain. Now I may have to repay the loan by selling my cow,†farmer Nabi Hossain said.
Local farmers said the beans after some days became red and pale instead of green.
Contacted, deputy director of DAE, Pabna, Mostafizur Rahman admitted that the Rupvan variety bean started decaying since the flowering of the plants. He, however blamed early cultivation and sowing of the seed by farmers and pest attack for it.
The seed was sowed early in Ashwin (mid-August) when the season was hot and humid which led to early sprout, discolouring of the crop and massive pest attack, he said.
The advised the farmers not to sow the seeds of this variety before the onset of dry season in future.
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