Home ›› 12 Jan 2023 ›› Nation
The ongoing cold wave coupled with dense fog that has been sweeping across the country over the last few days hampers different seasonal crops and Boro seedlings in the northern districts.
Experts and farmers are apprehending losses of winter vegetables including potato, maize and Boro seed beds. They fear fungal infection and cold injuries in the crop fields due to the prolonged adverse weather.
Moreover, the shortage of farm workers in rural areas has worsened the situation. The daily wage earners feel reluctant to work in the crop field leading to the scarcity of workers and high production costs.
Many of the farmers in the region who cultivate various crops are compelled to work in the crop field defying the cold wave to maintain their livelihood. Farmers and workers are failing to work the required hours in the crop fields.
Farmers said they get frozen amid the inclement weather and cannot stay long hours in the field. They need to shake their bodies lighting firewood and straw after taking repeated short intervals during their work.
A farm labour Abul Miah, 50, at Mornear Char on the bank of Teesta River under Gongachara upazila said, “I can’t leave home to work for want of warm clothes. The biting cold mingled with the shivering wind has paralyzed life in the char areas.”
“I went to the maize field to work in the morning around 10:00 am last Sunday but could only stay in the field for half an hour as the weather was severely cold,” said Hashem Ali, 50, a farmer from Char Votmari area under Kaliganj upazila of Lalmonirhat district.
Kabir Hossain, 45, a farm worker at Nawdanga village under Fulbari upazila of Kurigram district said, it becomes tough for him to sell physical labour amid the inclement weather. Finding no other option, he has to work in the crop fields defying the dense fog to support his family's expenditures.
“Earlier, we used to work on a daily basis payment. But we are working on a contract basis now as we cannot work continuously in the field due to the intensity of the cool weather,” he also said.
Afzal Hossain, 65, a farmer at Imadpur village under Mithapukur upazila of Rangpur district said the prevailing fog has disrupted farming in the rural areas badly. He has planted potatoes on three acres of land. Potato fields need nursing and huge water irrigation. He becomes worried about late blight infection in the potato plants due to inclement weather.
Farm workers are found rare in the village as they feel reluctant to work amid the chill. They even are charging high wages than usual. As a result, he has to hire the workers on a contract basis counting much.
“We need to pay Tk 500 a worker for day-long work in the crop field while the workers are charging at least Tk 600-700 for the same,” he added.
Salim Miah, 55, a farmer at Gadha village under Kishorganj upazila of Nilphamari district said he is planning to cultivate 20 bighs of IRRI-boro this year. Accordingly, he has prepared a seedbed which is turning colourless due to a cold-related injury.
“I have to buy seedlings if the seedbed gets damaged. The crop production will get hampered severely and costs would be high if the situation continues,” he added.
Nazrul Islam, 55, a farmer in Char Gaddimari area under the Hatibandha upazila of Lalmonirhat district said he is cultivating maize on ten bighas of char lands. Maize land demands water supply and nursing. He has failed to nurture the croplands properly for a lack of farm workers.
Rangpur Dinajpur Rural Service (RDRS) Sr Coordinator (Agriculture and Environment) Mamunur Rashid said, the prolonged cold and dense fog in addition to temperature fluctuation affect the seedlings of the seedbeds.
The inclement weather might hamper the cropping badly with increasing production costs in the region, he noted.
Additional Director of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) Rangpur region Agriculturist Mohammad Shah Alam said, “We are alert about the situation and have taken precautionary measures.”
“Our agriculture officers are suggesting the farmers spray medicine in the potato fields. They have advised the farmers to keep the boro seedbed covered with polythene in the chill and remove the cover in sunlight so that the seedlings might not be affected by the impact of the prevailing cold spell,” he added.
