BSS, Rangpur :
Harvest of different variety crops, including local variety early Boro, cultivated on the dried up riverbeds and low-lying charlands on the Brahmaputra basin in the northern region, has already started.
The char and riverside people are happy getting an excellent crop yield now on vast tracts of the dried up beds of the Brahmaputra, Teesta, Dharla, Ghaghot, Jamuna, other rivers and tributaries as the Boro harvest begins from the last week of May in the mainland.
According to sources in the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) and different NGOs, cultivation on the shoals, dried up riverbeds and charlands has become possible due to massive deposition of alluvial soils following climate change impacts.
Crops like paddy, maize, wheat, vegetables, groundnut, ‘china’, ‘kawn’, pulses, ‘gunji till’, tobacco, gourds, pumpkins, corn, pulses, mustard, other oil seeds, and watermelon have grown well on these lands this year.
The landless char people, small and marginal farmers have brought over 70,000 hectares land under drop cultivation this time and they are getting excellent production now and the harvesting process will continue till commencement of the rainy season.
Char dwellers Akbar Ali, 48, of village Char Montola, Sultan, 50, of Korai Barishal, Survan Bibi, 44, of Kheruar Char, Afsar, 55, of Char Goynar Patal on the Brahmaputra in Chilmari upazila said they are expecting a bumper crop production this year.
Farmers Abdur Razzak, 64, Kuddus Ali, 50, and Khairun Nesa, 49, of village Bengulia in Polashbari upazila said they achieved a bumper yield last year and are expecting excellent production of the crops cultivated on the dried up Kartoa riverbeds.
Horticulture specialist of the DAE Khandaker Md Mesbahul Islam said crop cultivation on these lands has been taking place due to drying up of the rivers with emergence of shoals following adverse climate change impacts and other reasons.
Associate Director- Agriculture of BRAC International (South Asia and Africa) Dr MA Mazid said increasing crop cultivation on the dried up riverbeds is not good news in the long run though the people are cultivating the same and getting better production.
“Rather, there is no alternative to revive water flows in the rivers by adopting scientific means to keep them live for better future, environment, agriculture, bio-diversity, ecology amid climate change impacts for survival of the habitation,” he said.
