Home ›› 18 Mar 2023 ›› Nation
Sunflower and mustard cultivation have exceeded its target fixed by the Agriculture Development Project Crop of five Districts in Khulna this season as its cultivation has been gaining popularity among the farmers.
Md Jahangir Hossain, deputy director of the Khulna Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), said that the government has given a three-year roadmap to increase oilseed production by 40 per cent in order to reduce oil imports. This year alone, 30 per cent oil crop plantation is expected to increase. Both sunflower and mustard oilseeds have been planted much more than the target.
Seeds and fertilisers have been distributed among the farmers as incentives to boost cultivation. The field-level agricultural officers are monitoring the fields to ensure a good yield.
The government has also initiated oil crop cultivation expansion under the GKBSP (Gopalganj, Khulna, Bagerhat, Satkhira, and Pirojpur) project. Additional Director of GKBSP in Khulna region Md Faridul Hasan said sunflower cultivation is lucrative and less expensive.
He said about 8 maunds of sunflower seed is produced from one bigha of land while initiatives are underway to create a market for selling sunflower seed. The government works aim at an incensement of oilseed production by 40 per cent within the next 3 years, he added.
Sunflower oil is beneficial for the human body as at least 400-gram oil comes from one kilogram of sunflower seed. Sunflower cultivation has got a bright possibility in the region as the weather and soil are conducive for its cultivation here.
A total of, 20 exhibition plots have been set up by Agriculture Development Project Crop (GKBSP) in Gopalganj, Khulna, Bagerhat, Satkhira and Pirojpur under Khulna agricultural region.
Following the instruction of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, sunflower farming has increased as the fallow land has been brought under sunflower cultivation, said Amarendunath Biswas, Project Officer of Agriculture Development Project Crop.
GKBSP have ensured training and motivation regarding sunflower cultivation to the farmers of the respective areas, he said.
Besides, the government has taken various steps to increase oilseed production, he added.
According to the Khulna DAE sources, mustard was cultivated on 805 hectares of land and sunflower on 90 hectares of land in the district last season. This year mustard has been cultivated on 1,665 hectares of land and sunflower on 1,698 hectares of land in the district. Most of these crops are planted on fallow and unused lands.
This year the production target for mustard has been fixed at 1,096 tonnes and the production target for sunflower is 234 tonnes. The oil crops are mostly cultivated in Daulatpur, Labanchara, Rupsha, Botiaghata, Digholia, Fultola, Dumuria, Terokhada, Dakop, Paikgasa and Koyra of Khulna.
Khulna DAE Additional Deputy Director (Crop) Md Mosaddek Hossain said the use of fallow land for mustard and sunflower cultivation is increasing.
“We expect a bumper yield if the weather is favourable. So far the condition of the cultivated crops is promising,” he said.
