NATORE, Dec 24: Thousands of growers in the district are delighted over the good market price of newly harvested T-Aman paddy.
The Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) office said farmers failed to get satisfactory production due to adverse weather condition. But the price of thin and coarse paddy is increasing gradually across the district despite low production.
A maund of thin paddy is being sold at Tk 1,050 to Tk 1,100 while coarse paddy is being sold at Tk 900 to Tk 950 in the wholesale market, said market sources.
The DAE, earlier this season, set a target of producing around 0.4 million tonnes of T-Aman paddy on 57,756 hectares of land.
Farmer Dulal Hossain (45) of Bagatipara upazila said, "I expected to get over 120 maunds of paddy from six bighas of land, but only got 78 maunds."
Still, the T-Aman growers are making good profits because of the high market price in this peak hour.
"I have sold five maunds of coarse paddy for Tk 5500 in the market recently," said another farmer Belal Hossain of Shingra upazila.
The price is expected to increase further when the government will start procuring rice in full swing, he added.
Meanwhile, BSS adds: In Rangpur, despite floods, farmers of Rangour region have produced 1.72 million tonnes of T-Aman this season breaking all previous record of yield.
Horticulture specialist of Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) at its regional office here Khondker Md Mesbahul Islam said the DAE had fixed a target of producing 1.45 million tonnes of T-Aman rice from 0.52 million hectares of land in Rangpur, Gaibandha, Kurigram, Lalmonirhat and Nilphamari districts this season.
The farmers had cultivated T-Aman on 0.59 million hectares of land exceeding the fixed farming target on 0.52 million hectares of land by 66,797 hectares.
"The achieved average yield rate of T-Aman rice stands at 2.90 tonnes of clean rice per hectare with 3.34 tonnes per hectare for hybrid variety, 2.94 tonnes for high yielding variety and 1.71 tonnes per hectare for local variety Aman this season," Islam added.
The farmers brought over 0.6 million hectares of land under T-Aman farming by August but the subsequent floods submerged growing plants of the crop on around 0.2 million hectares of land.
"However, the farmers re-transplanted Aman seedling on 52,681 hectares of land, completed gap filling on 99,989 hectares and transplanted on 39,117 hectares of fresh land after floods to exceed the fixed farming target this season," Islam added.
Regional Additional Director of DAE Shah Alam said the "The visit of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina during the floods to affected Dinajpur, Kurigram and Gaibandha and distribution of Aman seedlings among the flood-hit farmers to exceed farming target of T-Aman crop in this region."
Talking to the news agency, farmers Aminur Rahman, Shachindra Nath Roy and Abu Bakker Siddique here said they completed Aman harvest last week and got bumper yield of the food grain.