NATORE, Dec 13: Poor and marginal farmers of the district are happy with bitter-gourd production. They are also delighted with the fair price this season.
Some 600 hectares of land have come under the vegetable farming, according to the district Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) office.
During a recent visit, this correspondent found each kg of fresh bitter gourd is being sold at Tk 35 to Tk 45 in the retail market and at Tk 25 to Tk 30 in the wholesale market.
The wholesalers are also visiting the farmers to collect the vegetable in bulk to send it to Dhaka and elsewhere in the country.
Farmer Aslam Hossain, 45, who lives in Boraigram upazila, said he cultivated bitter-gourd on around 15 decimals of land this season, borrowing Tk 1500 from a local non-government organisation.
He said he already started harvesting it and earned more than Tk 1000. "I have already sold 40 kg of the vegetable for Tk 1600."
The farmers have shown more interest to bring new high crop land under the vegetable with assistance of local agriculture offices, said beneficiary peasant Abul Hossain, 45, under Lalpur upazila of the district.
Sub-assistance agriculture officer of DAE Abul Basar said bitter-gourd has grown well and is also selling at a fair rate in the district.
"To make it a grand success for the farmers, we also provided all sort of necessary agri-inputs among them," he added.
