Gangni jute farmers count loss for unfavorable weather

Gangni (Meherpur) Correspondent

Jute farmers of Gangni Upazila in the district are counting loss in jute cultivation due to unfavorable weather this season.

Due to shortage of water in different waterbodies following extreme heat, they are facing setback in rotting jute and extracting jute fiber. Besides, due to lack of rain, the jute plants did not grow much long.

Meanwhile, traders could not sell the jute purchased last year. Because the price of jute decreased during the year, the traders had to face problems. At the beginning of last year, per maund jute was bought and sold at Tk 2,800. Sometimes the price had decreased and it had to be sold at Tk 2,200. There are less buyers in the current market. Currently, the market price of jute is Tk 1,800 per maund. Some farmers said that by selling jute at this price and by giving all costs, their capital will suffer.

As the farmers did not make profit by cultivating paddy last year, they turned to jute cultivation in the hope of profit. According to the agriculture office sources, jute was cultivated less in Gangni last year but this year it has been cultivated on 12,600 hectares of land. As the weather was favorable and as the land of the upazila is fertile, jute was expected to grow well. But after the end of the first weeding, the jute plants did not grow well due to excess sun.

Jute farmer Yunus Ali of Dharmchaki Village in the upazila said that due to extreme drought, the yield of jute is only 7 to 8 maunds per bigha this year. The current market price is Tk 1,800 per maund. He had to spend Tk 11 to 12 thousand to grow jute in one-bigha land. Farmers are trying to sell the jute keeping it slightly wet as there is low price. Due to these reasons, jute traders are not interested in buying jute at fair price.

Jute farmers of Chengara, Bhatpara, Nawapara, Hijalbaria, Hinda, Harabhanga, Baliaghat and Betbaria villages said the same thing. They said that due to the less power supply and the increase in the price of diesel and fertilizer, many farmers were leaning towards jute cultivation instead of Boro paddy. But they are in trouble as the jute market is bad.

They also said that although the cultivation cost is low, a lot of work till jute cutting, rotting and drying in the sun has to be done. Moreover, a laborer has to be paid a daily wage of Tk 500. They said that this market price cannot be accepted after spending so much.

In this connection, Gangni Upazila Agriculture Officer Agriculturist Imran Hossain said that more jute has been cultivated this year than last year. This year jute could not grow long due to the extreme heat. Many farmers decided to cut jute early to compensate for their losses, but due to lack of water in the canals and ponds, they could not rot jute. Besides, the jute yield per bigha has been low. Farmers cannot benefit because of that. There is nothing to do when there is a natural disaster.