Our Correspondent :
Bumper yield of chilly has given substantial amount of money to the farmers of Gafargaon under Mymensingh district. Thus, chilly cultivation is gaining ground in Gafargaon char areas.
Once upon a time, the Brahmaputra River was very fierce in nature. Farmers of this upazila in the river basin of Brahmaputra are cultivating various types of crops such chilly, rice, pea-nuts, balsam, brinjal, etc. The river basins were filled with silt (Palli) earth during the monsoon which is favourable to chilly farming. In char areas poor people are changing the wheels of their fortune by cultivating various types of crops. Now they are growing bumper crops in the basin of the river Brahmaputra. The poor farmers have involved themselves in chilly cultivation for long years considering its economic aspect and they have achieving economic self-reliance.
This correspondent recently visited the char villages of this upazila and saw farmers are busy plunking of chilly from the fields with much enthusiasm. Even the poor women of this char area are busy plunking red-chilly from the lands. When contacted, Murshida Begum, Nurjahan, Ratna, Parul, Lily Begum, Nazma are plunking chilly from the fields. Murshida Begum, (48) informed that she has been plunking chilly from morning till sun set . She has plunked chilly about 30- 35 kg and she will get 4 kg chilly for 40 kg instead of her labour. Samad, Ruful, Amin also working in the fields. She also said, she gets 4-5 kg red-chilly everyday from the farmers. They are working in the lands of Balua-kanda village. Char algi, Char-kamaria , Nak kata Char, Nedier char of Gafargaon upazila chilly farming is increasing day by day. The women are working in the lands with men. In this way the poor women are collecting chilly and they don’t buy chilly.
Md Suruj Mea , a fortunate farmer of Balua kanda village of Charalgi union under Gafargaon Upazila said, four to six mounds of green chilly might be plunked from a bigha of land in a week. During the whole season chilly may be plunked 10 to 12 times from a land. Suruj Mea also said, he had undergone hard days along with his family members before then years ago as the Brahmaputra devoured his lands. After rising char in this river, he was devasted periodically and started cultivating chilly . He spent 50000/TK in each acre of land and got 2 mounds dry chilly from one katha . He got over 80 mounds of green chilly and earned about net profit TK 70000 by selling green and dry chilly that year. He is very happy now as a regular yearly income began him by cultivating chilly . He expressed his happiness over the farming of chilly during the last ten years and told economic prosperity brought him social recognition .
According to Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) office Gafargaon about 500 acres of fertile char lands in this upazila have been brought under the chilly cultivation this year. Agriculture Eztension Officer Anwar Hussain said, they have encouraged the poor farmers of char areas to cultivate chilly in their lands and gave them fertilizer , hye breed – seeds, proper training.
