Call to promote synchronised cultivation tech to boost output

Agricultural extension officials and experts urged the farmers to promote synchronised cultivation technology to make the farming system more profitable and sustainable by boosting its outputs.

They mentioned that large-scale adoption of the synchronised cultivation technology including its combined paddy harvester machine can be an effective means of facing the existing agriculture-related challenges.

The agriculturists came up with the observation while addressing a farmers’ field day meeting on the occasion of crop cutting at Laldighi area under Godagari upazila in the district on Tuesday.

The Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) organised the meeting in order to disseminate knowledge relating to various aspects of farm mechanisation among the farmers.

DAE Director General Badal Chandra Biswas addressed the meeting as the chief guest, while Additional Director Shamsul Wadud and Deputy Director Mozder Hossain spoke as special guests with Upazila Nirbahi Officer Sonjoy Kumar Mohanta in the chair.

Upazila Agriculture Officer Mariam Ahmed welcomed the participants.

Badal Chandra Biswas observed that the region’s agriculture is facing many challenges including climate change, labour shortage, irrigation water scarcity and an increase in crop cultivation cost. So, the promotion of farm mechanization has become indispensable.

He told the meeting that cropping intensity can be increased to 250 per cent or even 400 per cent from the existing 200 per cent by reducing the existing time gap between the two crops through the best uses of farm mechanisation.

Badal Biswas said average benefits from farm mechanisation have been estimated at 34 per cent labour savings, 31 per cent less seed required, six per cent fertiliser savings, and 32 per cent pesticide cost saving leading to 10 per cent lower production costs for many crops.

He urged the farmers to use rice transplanting machines as it is built on water-saving technology.

He added that the technology saves about 755 kWh (Kilowatt-Hour) per hectare yearly for the existing rice farming system. Portraying a salient feature of the machine before the participants he said it’s cost effective.