Rangpur water bodies’ re-excavation to produce 50,000 tonnes more paddy

A prospect of producing 50,000 tonnes of additional Aman paddy worth Tk 125 crore annually has been created from 10,000 hectares of land being got by re-excavation in water bodies in the greater Rangpur region.

Officials said the opportunity has been created following the re-excavation of 66.80-kilometre of canals on the verge of extinction and rivers by Barind Multipurpose Development Authority (BMDA) freeing 10,000 hectares of land from water-logging in six upazilas of Rangpur, Kurigram and Gaibandha districts.

Under the five-year (2019-2024) term ‘Expansion of irrigation in greater Rangpur district through best uses of surface water and conservation of rainwater project (EIRP)’, BMDA implemented the re-excavation works in the last two years.

As a result, water flow has revived in extinct canals and rivers enhancing water carrying capacity and quickly freeing the vast land area from water-logging making those cultivable again this season benefiting 75,000 people, including 15,000 farmers.

Farmer Md Kaikobad of village Baro Badnapara in Pirganj upazila of Rangpur said recent re-excavation of the extinct Chatra canal has freed vast land area from water-logging.

“I am cultivating Aman paddy on my two acres of land freed from water-logging for the first time in four decades,” he said, adding that people are now rearing ducks, rotting jute plants and catching indigenous fishes in the canal.

Majibur Rahman of nearby village Kantaduar said he lifted water from the re-excavated Chatra canal using a low-lift pump and irrigated his cropland for transplanting Aman paddy seedlings during a recent drought-like situation.

Like others, Suman Sharif Mandal of the same village said, “I am cultivating Aman paddy on my three acres of land freed from water-logging following re-excavation of the extinct Charta canal.”