Home ›› 29 Oct 2022 ›› Nation
Many farmers in Rangpur region are seen building their fortunes through making and selling vermicompost as its use is rising for crop and vegetable production gradually for the last couple of years.
The venture is contributing a lot towards lessening the gradually mounting pressure on chemical fertiliser in the region.
Mrginal farmers are being benefitted from producing and selling the vermicompost. The preparation of the compost is cost-effective which helps the farmers to become self-reliant, said Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) sources.
Around 10,000 marginal farmers in Rangpur, Kurgiram, Lalmonirhat, Nilphamari, and Gaibandha districts have are engaged in the process of fertilisation.
According to the concerned sources, a farmer can produce around 3-10 tonnes of vermicompost fertiliser in a year. One kg of fertiliser sells at Tk 11-12 in the markets while the farmer needs to spend a maximum Tk 7 for per kg production. The farmers are producing 10- 30 kg earthworm], which is sold at Tk 900-1100 per kg.
Many of the farmers of the districts have been applying the fertiliser in their homestead gardening and in the lands for vegetable farming, officials of DAE, Rangpur said.
Amjad Hossain, 50, a marginal farmer of Modhupur village under Kawnia upazila of Rangpur district said, it is an excellent indoor composting activity that needs to create a worm bin and sphere and throw all food scraps, rotten leaves and cow dung for the worms to feed off & make rich soil.
He has been producing the fertiliser for the last three years at home.
The fertiliser traders give them advance money to buy the vermicompost fertiliser. Local farmers buy fertiliser for vegetable cultivation. Many of them also buy earthworm fertiliser from them. The application of fertiliser in the land is increasing day by day. He gets benefits from producing the fertiliser.
Aduri Begum, 50, a farmer of Brommoputa River basin Vhattopara area under Chilamari upazila of Kurigram district said, she bought ten bins and started to procure the fertiliser at home a year back.
She said ‘’I am producing 20 kg vermicompost and one kg earthworm from each of the bins within three weeks. I am getting 200 kg vermicompost and ten kg earthworm, produced from ten rings in every three weeks of the month, and sell at Tk 2400 and Tk 9000 respectively while the production cost stands around Tk 2000.’’
“The manure preparation needs cow dung, false and rotten eggs, waste vegetables, food scrapes, used tea dust, and rotten leaves. I have to spend much as I need to buy cow dung. Those who have cow dung in their yard, they have little cost for the preparation,” he added.
Marginal farmers are given training in producing vermicompost under a project- ‘Sustained Opportunities for Nutrition Governance (SONGO)’ at Chilmari upazila of Kurigram district. The project is being implemented jointly by non-government agencies – RDRS Bangladesh and Cordaid with the support of the European Union.
A project official, Ahsanul Kabir Bulu said, the farmers of the district are producing fertiliser and are applying it in their homesteads and vegetable lands. They also become benefitted from selling their produced manure.
“We are encouraging and supporting the farmers to produce compost in order to grow fresh [vegetables. The application of fertiliser has been increasing gradually,” he added.
The project is being implemented in six upazilas of two districts – Kurigram and Gaibandha of the region.
Deputy Director, DAE, Kurigram, Biplob Kumar Mohonto said the department and some non-government organisations have been supporting the marginal farmers to produce the compost.
The marginal farmers of the region have become benefitted from producing the fertiliser which has created a huge demand in the markets. Many of the farmers have achieved self-reliance in producing the compost. The application of fertiliser is increasing every day, he added.
