BSS, Rajshahi :
Many rural people have got the path of improving their living standard through boosting local silk yarn production.
In Bagha and Charghat upazilas, most of the villagers are farming silkworm sericulture side by side with their regular household activities with the assistance of Bangladesh Sericulture Development Board (BSDB).
With a view to promoting sericulture and its industry through entrepreneurship development at different levels of production, the BSDB has set up an ideal sericulture village at Meerganj, said Sirajul Islam, member (Extension) of BSBD.
The five-year project titled “Extension and Development of Sericulture in Public and Private sector in Bangladesh” was implemented across the country involving Taka 300 million, he said.
Under the project, 23 ideal sericulture villages were established in the potential areas as a model to improve capacity of small and marginal farmers to establish high yielding mulberry garden and produce superior quality of silk cocoon.
The multidisciplinary activities provide unique job opportunities to the marginal farmers, landless poor, rural and contribute a lot to poverty reduction, he added.
He said,” There are around 80 small and medium silk factories in private sector with a capacity of manufacturing 25.50 million meters fabrics annually.”
Apart from this, there are about 10,000 private handlooms with capacity of producing 30 million meters silk fabric.
Sirajul Islam said the project is developing suitable mulberry and silkworm varieties besides producing and supplying superior quality of mulberry saplings. In addition to arrangement of training for 2,130 farmers, 330 people are being provided with improved training on reeling, weaving and dyeing and printing.
Another 700 farmers, 200 spinners and 200 silk weavers are being given need-based training to improve their working efficiency in the field for improvement of rearing of mulberry trees and silkworm.
Liakat Ali, President of Bangladesh Silk Industry Owners Association, said boosting production of local yarn can help revitalising the silk sector to regain its lost legacy alongside meeting the existing local demands.
Summer beans farming gains ground
Summer beans farming has been gaining ground in different areas of the region including its vast Barind tract for the last couple of years as the farmers are getting extra benefit from the farming.
The plants were covered with massive green leaves predicting a bumper production. At present, harvested beans has appeared in the local markets in limited scale.
According to the officials of Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE), last year around 20 farmers were imparted necessary training. They obtained a significant success after farming the vegetable on 15 bigha of land for the first time. Witnessing the success over 200 farmers received training this season. Only in Godagari Upazila, the farmers cultivated summer beans on around 130 hectares. Last year, the DAE supplied two hybrid varieties seed- Ghritakanchan and Rupbhan- among the interested farmers.
Ariful Islam, a farmer of Sorail village, had cultivated beans on 10 katha of low-lying land and harvested crops valued at Taka 34,000. He spent Taka 17,000 for the farming purposes.
Meanwhile, beans cultivation has become an effective means of bringing fortune for many farmers in the vast Barind tract comprising 25 upazilas of Rajshahi, Chapainawabgonj and Naogaon districts in both summer and winter seasons.
Large numbers of farmers are now engaged in bean cultivation commercially in the recent times considering its economic prospect and as it proved highly profitable changing the lives of many people in the region.
Many rural people have got the path of improving their living standard through boosting local silk yarn production.
In Bagha and Charghat upazilas, most of the villagers are farming silkworm sericulture side by side with their regular household activities with the assistance of Bangladesh Sericulture Development Board (BSDB).
With a view to promoting sericulture and its industry through entrepreneurship development at different levels of production, the BSDB has set up an ideal sericulture village at Meerganj, said Sirajul Islam, member (Extension) of BSBD.
The five-year project titled “Extension and Development of Sericulture in Public and Private sector in Bangladesh” was implemented across the country involving Taka 300 million, he said.
Under the project, 23 ideal sericulture villages were established in the potential areas as a model to improve capacity of small and marginal farmers to establish high yielding mulberry garden and produce superior quality of silk cocoon.
The multidisciplinary activities provide unique job opportunities to the marginal farmers, landless poor, rural and contribute a lot to poverty reduction, he added.
He said,” There are around 80 small and medium silk factories in private sector with a capacity of manufacturing 25.50 million meters fabrics annually.”
Apart from this, there are about 10,000 private handlooms with capacity of producing 30 million meters silk fabric.
Sirajul Islam said the project is developing suitable mulberry and silkworm varieties besides producing and supplying superior quality of mulberry saplings. In addition to arrangement of training for 2,130 farmers, 330 people are being provided with improved training on reeling, weaving and dyeing and printing.
Another 700 farmers, 200 spinners and 200 silk weavers are being given need-based training to improve their working efficiency in the field for improvement of rearing of mulberry trees and silkworm.
Liakat Ali, President of Bangladesh Silk Industry Owners Association, said boosting production of local yarn can help revitalising the silk sector to regain its lost legacy alongside meeting the existing local demands.
Summer beans farming gains ground
Summer beans farming has been gaining ground in different areas of the region including its vast Barind tract for the last couple of years as the farmers are getting extra benefit from the farming.
The plants were covered with massive green leaves predicting a bumper production. At present, harvested beans has appeared in the local markets in limited scale.
According to the officials of Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE), last year around 20 farmers were imparted necessary training. They obtained a significant success after farming the vegetable on 15 bigha of land for the first time. Witnessing the success over 200 farmers received training this season. Only in Godagari Upazila, the farmers cultivated summer beans on around 130 hectares. Last year, the DAE supplied two hybrid varieties seed- Ghritakanchan and Rupbhan- among the interested farmers.
Ariful Islam, a farmer of Sorail village, had cultivated beans on 10 katha of low-lying land and harvested crops valued at Taka 34,000. He spent Taka 17,000 for the farming purposes.
Meanwhile, beans cultivation has become an effective means of bringing fortune for many farmers in the vast Barind tract comprising 25 upazilas of Rajshahi, Chapainawabgonj and Naogaon districts in both summer and winter seasons.
Large numbers of farmers are now engaged in bean cultivation commercially in the recent times considering its economic prospect and as it proved highly profitable changing the lives of many people in the region.
