Farmers in Sunamganj haor areas are counting the labour cost of huge silt on their lands while preparing them for Boro cultivation this year.
They are already in trouble due to late and slow recession of water from many areas while the cropping season is passing fast, officials and locals said.
A farmer from Tahirpur, Sabbir Alam said silt accumulation is too high this season as floods have hit the region four times over the past year.
“At least two feet of silt have accumulated on my lands,” he said.
"I am to cultivate five acres of lands this year. Like many other areas in ours, much labour is needed since preparing the lands for Borto cultivation has become difficult,” he added.
In some areas many farmers are compelled to make their lands ready for Boro cultivation without even ploughing them, as there is no embankment there – for instance on the banks of the Boulai River in Jamalgarh area, said a farmer of Sripur in Tahirpur.
An official at the Bangladesh Water Development Board said they have already conducted a preliminary survey for constructing an embankment in Jamalgarh area.
Hopefully, it would be done this year, he added.