Kh Ekramul Haq Samrat, Kurigram :
Farmers in four upazilas of Kurigram district are expecting bumper yield of Boro paddy of Shakti-2 variety this year.
This year 1,05,976 hectares of land in the district have been brought under Boro paddy cultivation, said sources of the Department of agriculture Extension (DAE) in Kurigram.
BRAC Agricultural Resources and Development Centre (BARDC) has invented the hybrid variety of Boro paddy that is planted in Kurigram from 2012.Special identities of the variety are: long birds with much paddy, few past attacks and production 38 to 40 mounds per bigha. Lutfar Rahman, 52, a farmer of Proshad Kaloa village of Kathalbari union under Sadar upazila of the district, said, “I have cultivated first ever the Shakti-2 paddy in one acore of land. I expect I shall get 30 mounds per bigha of paddy from Shakti-2 variety while I got 20 mounds per bigha from Brri-28 variety last year. I shall cultivate the Shakti-2 variety coming year too.”
The harvesting day of Shakti-2 was held recently farmer Ziaur Rahma’s field in Khalisha Kaloa village of Kathalbari union where Deputy Director of the DAE Protip Kumar Mondal, Sadar Upazila Agriculture Officer Md. Majnur Rashid and Senior Upazila Manager of the Brac Md. Mokarram Hossain were present. Farmer Ziaur Rahman said, “I received 21 kilograms (humidity 17 %) of the variety in 0.5 decimals of Boro field of Shakti-2. I expect I shall get 29 mounds per bigha accordingly.” Senior Upazila Manager of the Brac Md Mokarram Hossain said, “The Shakti-2 variety has been cultivated in 1,281 acores of land of 26 unions under Nageswari, Ulipur, Chilmari and Sadar upazila of the district. We gave logistic supports to farmers through local agriculture officials. Farmers could bring more production through the variety. It will be extended in all the nine upazila here in coming year.”
