Compared to other years, Bangladesh has created a record in the bumper yield of Boro rice this year. To meet the food shortage needs of the people of the country, it is expected that this year’s high yield of Boro rice will play a huge role in the country’s food shortage. The Department of Agriculture Extension said that due to the favorable weather for this year’s crop, there has been a bumper crop of Boro rice. A bumper crop of rice brings a smile to the farmer’s face. In the current season, the farmers have forgotten the cost of fertilizers and irrigation materials, getting more yield than in the past. They say, this is a good news of high yield in paddy cultivation, but they are not satisfied with the price. A large part of Boro comes from the Howrah area. This time, the news of nearly 90 percent paddy harvesting in Howrah area before the natural disaster is positive. Before the onset of natural calamities, the farmers used to worry every year whether they would be able to harvest the Boro crops at home or not, but this time it was not like that. To overcome this situation, new varieties of rice need to be invented, which have a shorter life span than conventional rice varieties. Due to climate change, the knowledge acquired by the farmers of the country is not very useful now. In this situation, farmers should be given proper training so that they can continue to produce bumper crops by facing the new situation. Farmers produce crops with difficulty but they are deprived in most cases when it comes to prices, this news is quite old. Sometimes, farmers are forced to sell various crops at prices lower than the cost of production due to lack of alternatives. Government policies need to be in place to protect farmers. When the government buys rice from rice mill owners, rice mill owners and traders benefit. Farmers said that even though the government is collecting paddy directly from the farmers, the price is not increasing. Due to various crises, many countries may restrict food exports in the coming days, which is widely discussed. Taking this matter into consideration, steps should be taken to ensure food security of the country. For this, timely supply of agricultural inputs should be ensured to the farmers. Farmers need to be properly encouraged to increase agricultural production. It is necessary to change the system of marketing of agricultural products in the country. It can be noted that many times the price that the farmer gets for the produce is equal to the cost of production. Profits go mainly to middlemen. There is a need to develop a system in the country so that farmers can sell their produce directly to the consumer. Farmers will benefit as well as consumers. The production cost of farmers is expected to increase further in the coming days. Keeping this in mind steps should be taken to provide necessary subsidies to the agriculture sector. If not, there is a danger of disrupting the country’s food security. The Directorate of Agriculture Extension has set a target of 5 million hectares of boro plantation in this boro season. The target of rice production has been fixed at 2 crore 10 lakh tonnes. The government has given top priority to the agriculture sector to ensure production of food grains and reduce import dependence. For that purpose Boro has also increased the area under cultivation this season. A new record has been set for boro production this year. This year Boro production is 2 crore 7 lakh 84 thousand 508 tons, which is the highest ever. Besides, the yield has also increased compared to previous years. Last year, the national average yield of boro rice in the country was 3.97 tonnes per hectare. This year it has increased to 4.29 tons. That is, the production per hectare has increased by 8.00 percent more than last year. The data of the Ministry of Agriculture says that the production of Boro this year is more than 11 lakh tons compared to last year. Last year production was 1 crore 96 lakh tonnes. This year production has exceeded the target.
In the current fiscal year 2022-2023, for the purpose of Boro rice cultivation, the Department of Agriculture Extension has set a target of 2 lakh 41 thousand 900 hectares of land for the production of hybrid, Ufshi and local varieties of rice. Out of this, more than 1.3 lakh hectares of rice will be cultivated for hybrid varieties, more than 3.6 lakh hectares for Ufshi varieties and 0.176 lakh hectares for local varieties of rice. In the last financial year 2021-2022, the target of boro cultivation was 48 lakh 72 hectares of land. Plantation has been done on 49 lakh 51 thousand hectares of land. Last year the rice production target was 20.9 million tons. Production has been 2 crore 10 lakh tons. Compared to last year, the amount of land in Boro plantation has increased by 5,600 hectares. And the rice production target has been set at 20 million tons. Which is one lakh tons more than last year. The farmers of the country are largely responsible for the talk of self-sufficiency in food. It is their self-motivated initiative and interest that produce crops in the country. They not only produce conventional crops, but also produce other non-conventional crops, fruits, vegetables with great interest. From strawberries, dragons, grapes to other fruits which are not usually produced in our country, they are successfully producing them. It is making continuous efforts in the production of all kinds of products, starting from raw grains to agricultural products. That is why, the crisis of food products that is being talked about all over the world after Corona and the war in Ukraine, its impact has been very little in the country. The main reason for this is the indomitable desire and interest of our farmers to grow crops. In this case, the role of the government is somewhat, but the desire of the farmers is increasing the crop production. However, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has repeatedly called for planting every inch of the country so that there is no food crisis. His words also inspired the farmers. Unfortunately, the farmer who invests labor and money in growing crops to make the country self-sufficient in food does not get a fair price for the produce. Many times its production cost does not even rise. Even if the government fixes the price, he does not get the price. Despite the good yield in the current Boro season, farmers say that they will face losses if the government does not increase the purchase price of the produce. Farmers say that if the government gives a purchase price of Tk 30 per kg, their production cost will be less. Haji Ramiz Uddin, a farmer of Mehar village in Chandina, Kurmilla, said, ‘I had to spend about Tk 1,200 to produce one maund of paddy. But, the purchase price fixed by the government is almost the same. This farmer asked, ‘Then how can I profit?’ The price of paddy in our area is fluctuating between Tk 1,500 to Tk 1,200 per maund. Traders are giving us low prices on the pretext of low quality. Many farmers are forced to sell their crops despite low prices. Because they need money to meet the daily expenses of the family. Allegations have already been raised that the government is forcing farmers to sell paddy less than the price fixed by the Boro paddy per maund to a class of middlemen. Needless to say, farmers and consumers have been deprived of fair prices for ages due to these middlemen. Nothing can stop them. Many times farmers throw their produce on the road in protest. This image has become regular. They do not gain much in this protest. Must be disappointed. With regret and hope they reap the harvest. It plays a role in solving the country’s food crisis. Due to the impact of Corona, the industries of the country faced huge losses. Many institutions close down. Many companies have experienced disruptions in production, reduced exports and layoffs to cut costs. The government has provided incentives to various industries starting from garments. The incentives given to the agricultural sector were very meager as compared to the industrial sector. Farmers voluntarily grow crops to maintain food supplies. It is their usual spontaneous act. Farmers should get the most respect and support. They rarely get it. They want only one thing.
Fair value of produce. They are happy to confirm this. They couldn’t be happier. The government should ensure fair prices to keep farmers happy and increase crop production. It has to be done to keep the country free from food crisis. Appropriate and fair price should be ensured so that the farmers benefit. In this case, the concerned authorities of the government have to buy the crops directly from the farmers.
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