By Md Aynal Haque

RAJSHAHI, July 22, 2022 (BSS)- Expansion of modern technologies has brought a new dimension to the agriculture sector in terms of boosting yield side by side with generating entrepreneurs in the region, including its vast Barind tract.
 
Iblul Hassan, 40, a resident of Kakonhat area under Godagari upazila in the district, has become a successful small and medium entrepreneur (SME) farmer after using the best of modern farming technologies.
 
He has been contributing a lot towards selling quality seeds of high valued crops since his entrepreneurship began around four years back.
 
Elevating from a marginal farmer he has transformed himself into an established agricultural entrepreneur. Hossain is getting full-length technological support from the local offices of the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE).
 
In 2018, he was selected as an SME farmer under the ‘DAE’s Farmers level Quality Seed of Pulse, Oilseed and Spice Production, Preservation and Distribution Project’ and that was the turning point of his life.
 
Iblul obtained a projection plot of onion seed through the upazila agriculture office in Rabi season of 2018-19 financial year.
 
In the initial year, he harvested 240 kilograms of seed making a neat profit of around Tk 2.32 lakh.
 
Not only onion seed, he was also given three demonstration plots for producing quality lentil seed and two plots for mustard seed as per the project objectives.
 
Subsequently, he produced 2,520 kilograms of lentil seed and 1,440 kilograms of mustard seed and sold those at Tk 2.40 lakh in local markets.
 
In the following 2019-20 fiscal year, he also produced 240 kilograms of onion seed from one projection plot, 3,500 kilograms of lentil seed from five plots and 740 kilograms of mustard seed from one plot.
 
Apart from this, he obtained 480 kilograms of mungbean seed from two plots and 900 kilograms of sesame seed from three plots in the Kharif season.
 
“On behalf of the project, he was imparted training on how to produce, process and preserve quality seeds of onion, pulse and mustard after using the best of modern agriculture technologies,” said Sub Assistant Agriculture Officer Ashraful Alam.
 
Assessing his success, he was also given seed processing, packaging and preservation materials and devices. Currently, Iblul has been running a seed-selling shop at Kakonhat bazar successfully.
 
Iblul Hassan is one among many others who have founded themselves as successful entrepreneurs in the fields of quality seed productions.
 
Ashraful Alam said massive expansion of information and communication technologies, including mobile phone, apps, whatsapp, facebook and messengers, have been playing a vital role towards flourishing entrepreneurships among the farmers.
 
In the current season, superb production of onion-seed has been attained as the farmers have cultivated the cash crop on the ever-highest lands in the region including its vast Barind tract.
 
Akbar Ali, 54, a farmer of Palpur village under Godagari upazila, had harvested around 300 kilograms of seed from three bighas of land last year. He sold the seed at Taka 3,000 to 5,000 per kilogram during the last sowing season.
 
Ali said he earned around Tk 12 lakh after selling the crop last season. The lucrative earning has inspired him to cultivate the onion seed on five bighas of land this year. Production cost is around Tk 50,000 to 60,000 per bigha of land, he added.
 
Upazila Agriculture Officer Sabiha Sultana said farmers’ level crop production can easily be enhanced to 15 to 20 percent on an average if they can avail the scope of using quality seed in their farming fields.
 
He said they are taking the responsibility of making the farmers competent for enhancing quality seeds of the high valued crops to meet up the gradually mounting demands of those in the country.
 
Agriculturist Sultana said seed must be qualitative as its significance towards food security, nutrition and production enhancement is irreparable.
 
Utmost emphasis has been given on encouraging the growers towards boosting quality seed production by themselves after using the best of existing agriculture technologies besides the natural resources in the region including its vast Barind tract.