By Mamun Islam
 
RANGPUR, March 21, 2022 (BSS) - Mustard farmers are very happy getting a
bumper production of mustard and excellent market price after completing
harvest of the oil seeds last week in Rangpur agriculture region.
 
Officials of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) said a target of
producing 53,733 tonnes of mustard from 38,710 hectares of land was fixed for
all five districts in the region during the current Rabi season.
 
"Farmers finally cultivated mustard on 39,290 hectares of land exceeding the
fixed farming target by 580 hectares or 1.50 percent this season," Additional
Director of the DAE's Rangpur region Agriculturist Md. Tauhidul Ikbal told
BSS today.

Farmers cultivated mustard on 7,700 hectares of land in Rangpur, 10,115
hectares in Gaibandha, 13,980 hectares in Kurigram, 1,940 hectares in
Lalmonirhat and 5,555 hectares of land in Nilphamari districts this time in
the region.

"After completing harvest of the crop, farmers have produced 57,370 tonnes of
mustard in the region, also exceeding the fixed production target by 3,637
tonnes or 6.77 percent this season," he said.

Farmers achieved an excellent average yield rate of 1.46 tonnes of the oil
seeds per hectare of land following expanded cultivation of its high yielding
varieties evolved by Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute (BARI).
 
Deputy Director of the DAE for Rangpur, Agriculturist Md. Obaidur Rahman
Mandal said farmers mostly cultivated high yielding varieties of mustard like
BARI Sarisa-14, BARI Sarisa-15 and BARI Sarisa-18 and other varieties this
time.

The DAE and other agriculture related departments extended assistance to
farmers to make the intensive mustard cultivation programme a success.

The government also distributed mustard seeds and fertilizers free of cost as
special incentives among small and marginal farmers to cultivate mustard on
one bigha of land each.

"Despite crop diversification and cultivation of Aman rice on more land
during the last season, farmers exceeded the fixed mustard farming target by
bringing more land under cultivation of the highly profitable crop this
season," Mandal added.
 

Market sources said the newly harvested mustard oilseed is currently being
sold at rates between Taka 3,500 and Taka 4,000 per mound (every 40 kg) in
local markets depending on the quality and variety of the oil seeds.

"In the beginning of the harvesting of mustard last month, the oil seeds were
being sold at rates between Taka 2,800 and Taka 3,000 per mound (every 40
kg)," said mustard trader Mohsin Ali at Shotibari Bazar in Mithapukur upazila
of Rangpur.

Talking to BSS, Senior Coordinator (Agriculture and Environment) of RDRS
Bangladesh Agriculturist Mamunur Rashid appreciated various pragmatic steps
taken by the government to expand mustard farming and increase its output for
attaining self-reliance on edible oil.

"Expanded farming of high yielding varieties of mustard adopting latest
technologies is contributing to increasing production of the crop creating a
new hope of meeting local demand of edible oil reducing dependence on its
import in the future," he added.

Talking to BSS, farmers Manik Mian, Solaiman Ali, Dulal Chandra Roy, Amenur
Rahman, Sohel Rana, Iqbal Hossain and Mohammad Ali of different villages in
Rangpur said they were very happy getting bumper mustard production with
lucrative prices.