Home ›› 17 Aug 2021 ›› Nation
Tea cultivation has been gaining momentum in greater Mymensingh, bringing solvency to many farmers as well as farm-workers improving their life standard and livelihoods.
A total of 50 farmers, including six farmers in Sreebardi upazila of Sherpur, three in Nalitabari upazila, 13 farmers in Jhenaigati upazila, four in Nakla upazila and one farmer in Muktagachha upazila of Mymensingh have started tea cultivation.
Bangladesh Tea Research Institute (BTRI), a body of the Bangladesh Tea Board, has taken the initiative to widen the tea cultivation in greater Mymensingh few years back.
The government has taken a project, titled “Greater Mymensingh District Small Scale Tea Expansion Project” with a cost of Tk74.47 crore. The duration of the project is from January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2025.
To provide technical support to the tea farmers, a five-member expert team, led by director of the BTRI Dr Mohammad Ali, visited the small scale tea gardens in Sreebardi, Jhenaigati, Nakla and Nalitabari of Sherpur district and Muktagachha upazila of Mymensingh district.
The experts advised the farmers how to cultivate tea profitably in a simple and scientific ways on how to plant seedlings in the land, apply fertilisers, take care of trees, choose leaves, control pests and diseases and make tea.
“In order to cultivate tea commercially, 26,000 improved varieties of tea saplings have been distributed among 26 local farmers and the planting of tea saplings has started from April 29, 2016,” Dr Mohammad Ali said.
The team urged local entrepreneurs and interested parties to come forward to increase tea cultivation in the region.
Farmer Abul Hashem of Bijoypur village in Muktagacha cultivated tea on his 32 decimal land experimentally in 2018 and became a successful tea cultivator.
Hashem said now more than 50 farmers in the region have become solvent by cultivating the cash crop.
“I hope, most farmers in the region will be benefited by cultivating tea commercially,’’ he added.
Traditionally, tea has been a potential cash crop in Bangladesh. As a result of population growth, continuous urbanization and social development of the people, the domestic demand for tea has increased.
However, the availability of large-scale land required for the establishment of large-scale tea gardens is gradually declining. In this case, expansion of small-scale tea cultivation may be a viable option.
Therefore, the government has been implementing various initiatives for the last two decades to expand small-scale tea plantations along with large gardens to meet the growing demand for tea. Panchagarh is a pioneer district for small scale tea cultivation.
Following suit, Bangladesh Tea Board is implementing small-scale tea cultivation expansion projects in Panchagarh, Thakurgaon, Lalmonirhat, Nilphamari, Dinajpur, Khagrachhari, Rangamati and Bandarban districts.
Tea cultivation has already been revolutionized in Panchagarh and Thakurgaon districts. Around 9.6 million kilogrammes of tea is being produced annually on 8,680 acres of land in the northern part of Bangladesh.
Apart from contributing to the national production of tea in the north, it is also playing an effective role in the socio-economic development of the people of the region and alleviation of rural poverty.
From the very beginning, Bangladesh Tea Board has been working relentlessly to expand tea cultivation and explore new areas suitable for tea cultivation. The greater Mymensingh region is going to be known as the fourth region of tea after Sylhet, Chittagong and Panchagarh.
