Home ›› 27 Nov 2021 ›› Nation
Farmers of Bogura’s Sariakandi upazila are eying a bumper production of chilli this year, expecting to earn Tk 55 crore, sources at the Department of Agricultural Extension’s (DAE) local office said.
The DAE office has fixed a target of producing chilli on 3,750 hectares of cropland in the upazila this year.
However, till now, 3,620 hectares of cropland have been brought under chilli cultivation. Of this, 1,735 hectares were used for hybrid chilli cultivation, and 1,885 hectares for the Ufsi variety, according to the DAE office of Sariakandi.
“About 2.4 metric tonnes of chilli are produced from one hectare of cropland. Therefore, we are expecting that over 9,000 metric tonnes would be produced from 3,750 hectares,” said Abdul Halim, an agricultural officer of Sariakandi.
“If a kilogramme of chilli sells for Tk 60, 90 lakh kilogrammes of the spice would sell for more than Tk 55 crore. The return is remarkable considering that it comes from just one upazila,” he added.
Farmers in the char areas of the upazila – Chaluabari, Haatbari, Fazilpur, Teligari, Gouladanga, Manikdayir, Aucharpara, Chakarthinath, Kazla, Jamthol, Pakuria, Uttar Tengrakura, Char Ghagua, Nobboi er Char, Char Batia, Chilapara, Charpara, Mothurapara, Indurmara, Dakatmara, Mulbari, Dharabarsha, Shangkerpur, Kamarpur and Poutibari – get marooned in floods during monsoon and fall victim to river erosion almost every year.
However, these disasters also come with some blessings as they bring silt to the land, making it fertile. Thus, no fertilisers or pesticides are needed to grow crops on that land, and farmers are able to produce a multitude of crops, including winter vegetables such as Gainja paddy, radish, onion, spinach, and bottle gourd.
But the hybrid variety of chilli remains the favourite, the farmers said.
Chillies are sold in three forms – green, red, and dried. Whereas green chilli is sold in the retail and wholesale markets of the country, dried chilli is purchased by different private food companies, and it has good market demand.
The traders buy red chillies from the farmers and then dry them for sale. Some farmers also sell dried chillies to the traders.
Although the DAE claims that the farmers are getting good prices for the spice, some local farmers have alleged that farmers in many remote char areas are being compelled to sell chilli at cheaper prices due to poor infrastructure.
Sultan Ali, a farmer of Jourgachha village of Bhelabari union, told The Business Post after being encouraged by the local DAE office, he cultivated chilli on 22 decimals of cropland and earned over Tk 2 lakh last year.
“I have cultivated different varieties of chillies on 62 decimals of land this year. With a production cost of Tk 65,000, I have sold chillies worth Tk 1.22 lakh till now. If all goes well, I am expecting a good profit by the end of this season,” Sultan said.
Farmer Jobed Ali of Kazla union said he cultivated chilli on 18 bighas of land this year.
“I have sold seven maunds of chillies till now. I will be harvesting chillies from my cropland till January-February next year. I am expecting a profit,” he said.
Agricultural Officer Abdul Halim told The Business Post the upazila had seen a massive output this season, and farmers are getting fair prices.
“Farmers can harvest chillies from the same plants several times a season. That is why farmers are getting more inclined to chilli cultivation,” he said.
