RAJSHAHI, Dec 4, 2021 (BSS) - Around 2.83 lakh tonnes of mustard yield
are expected to be harvested from around two lakh hectares of lands in all
eight districts under Rajshahi division during the current Rabi season.

     The Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) has set a target of
producing 1.10 lakh tonnes of mustard from 77,960 hectares of land in four
districts of Rajshahi Agricultural Zone, while another 1.73 lakh tonnes from
1.21 lakh hectares of land in four other districts of Bogura Agricultural
Zone.

     At present, entire farming fields have started turning yellowish,
creating an eye-catching look. DAE's different initiatives and favorable
climate conditions in the region during this Rabi season becomes a boon for
mustard plants to grow well, predicting bumper productions.

     Sirajul Islam, Additional Director of DAE, said 98,000 farmers were
given seeds and fertilizers worth around Taka 3.83 crore free of cost for
cultivating mustard in the division under the government's agriculture
incentive programme.

     In addition to the DAE, various other research and development
organizations like Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute (BARI) and many
NGOs have taken adequate steps in collaboration with other departments this
season to achieve the fixed production targets.

     The agri-departments and NGOs have already provided quality seeds,
necessary inputs and training on the latest technologies to the farmers.

     The landless and marginal farmers have also brought vast tracts of the
sandy char lands under mustard cultivation this time in the Ganges basins and
the crops are growing excellent everywhere in the region.

     Abdul Mazid, 35, of Nandigram village under Durgapur Upazila, said he
had cultivated mustard seed on two bigha of land last year and got yield of
six mounds per bigha.

     He has brought three bighas of land under the cash crop farming this
season and is expecting good yield.

     Rashidul Hassan, 45, another farmer of Kakonhat village, has become
successful through cultivating the cash crop for the last couple of years.
This year, he cultivated the crop on four bighas of land.

     Meanwhile, DASCOH Foundation, an NGO, under its Integrated Water
Resource Management (IWRM) Project has been working to promote various less-
water consuming crops like mustard.

     The IWRM project is being implemented at around 1,280 drought-prone
villages in 39 Union Parishads and three municipalities of eight upazilas in
Rajshahi, Naogaon and Chapainawabganj districts since 2014, said Jahangir
Alam Khan, Coordinator of the project.

     The On Farm Research Division (OFRD) of BARI has been working to make
crop farming profitable through extension of its improved variety and
improved management in the Barind area.

     BARI has released 16 high yielding mustard seed varieties and two of
those- BARI Sharisha-15 and Tari-7 have become popular in the growers' level
of the region.

     Dr Jagadish Chandra Barman, Principal Scientific Officer of OFRD (Barind
Centre), said more than 100 farmers were given improved varieties of mustard
seeds and fertilizer for farming on around 120 bighas of land in Rajshahi,
Chapainawabganj and Naogaon districts during the current season.

     He said mustard seed is a water-saving crop and its expansion in the
Barind area is very important towards lessening the gradually mounting
pressure on its underground water.