Hundreds achieve self-reliance thru’ cultivation of high-priced fruits

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Hundreds of people including small and marginal farmers have achieved self-reliance through commercial cultivation of high-priced and quick growing fruits in the northern region in recent years.
According to the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) and NGO sources, farming of high-priced fruits has been expanding fast mostly through private initiatives and integrated approaches bringing a silent revolution in the rural economy.
More than 30,000 families including landless, ultra poor, distressed women, small and marginal farmers have achieved self-reliance so far by cultivating different high-priced and quick growing fruits in their cultivable lands, homesteads, fallow lands and other places.
The motivational activities, supports and latest technologies being provided by the DAE, other agri-departments and NGOs proved to be effective in achieving the success through expanded cultivation of these fruits in the region during the past five years.
Horticulture Specialist of the DAE Khandker Md Mesbahul Islam said many families have achieved self- reliance through farming quick growing and cross-variety fruits like orange, grape, banana, baukul, applekul, papaya, lemon, strawberry, water melon, wax apple, ‘panifal’, guava and other variety fruits.
Besides, cultivation of over 70 varieties of seasonal and traditional fruits including 35 indigenous species are also expanding every year in the homestead areas, cultivable and fallow lands in the region, he said.
According to the markets sources, the newly harvested baukul, applekul and many other varieties of the high-valued and quick growing fruits have already appeared in the local markets with excellent price and the other varieties will appear very soon.
Fruit farmers Abdus Sabur, Kamrun Nahar, Kalipado Roy and Rezaul Karim said the common people are also meeting nutritional demands through producing fruits around their homesteads as market prices of fruits are going beyond their reach.

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