Fields across Chandina upazila in Comilla are currently bustling with winter vegetable cultivation activities. Preparations are in full swing everywhere—somewhere land is being prepared, elsewhere tomato saplings are being planted, and in other fields, preparations are underway for cultivating cauliflowers and cabbages. Farmers are making fresh investments in the hope of bringing early vegetables to the market to secure good prices. They anticipate that if the weather remains favorable, vegetable farming will once again yield handsome profits.
However, alongside this hope lies anxiety. Farmers are deeply concerned about the rising production costs, including fertilizers, pesticides, and laborers' wages. Meanwhile, reports of rat infestations in Aman paddy fields have emerged from several areas across the upazila. Especially in villages such as Tulatoli, Chaikot, and Baro Gobindpur within Chandina Pourashava, as well as various other unions, farmers are growing increasingly worried about harvesting their crops due to rat attacks damaging paddy plants and ears, alongside saplings of beans, yardlong beans (borboti), and eggplants.
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Thus, Chandina's agriculture currently presents a picture of both potential and risk—on one hand, an attempt to capture the early vegetable market, and on the other, a relentless battle to protect the Aman paddy.
According to the Upazila Agriculture Office, a target has been set to produce 43,755 metric tons of winter vegetables across 1,330 hectares of land in Chandina this current season. Up to the time of this report, cultivation has been completed on 310 hectares of land. Preparations and cultivation of early vegetables are progressing dynamically in areas including Bataghasi, Suhilpur, Madhaiya, Mohichail, Etbarpur, Barera, Maizkhar, Chilora, Ewazband, and Purba Amborpur.
One of the primary attractions of early vegetable cultivation for farmers is the prospect of receiving relatively higher prices at the beginning of the season. However, a good yield alone does not guarantee profit; a farmer's ultimate net income depends on production costs, market prices, transportation expenses, and crop quality.
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Farmer Babul Mia from Uttor Krishnapur village in Bataghasi union stated that this year he has cultivated maize on 90 decimals of land. With his fields currently in good condition, he expects a profit if the weather remains favorable. He further mentioned that he regularly guards his maize field and uses rat traps to protect his crops. Nevertheless, he noted that the rat infestation has not completely subsided. Farmers fear that if crops continue to be destroyed in this manner before harvesting the vegetables and paddy, recovering production costs will become extremely difficult.
Farmer Abdur Rahim from Srimantapur village stated that he is cultivating beans with the aspiration of bringing early vegetables to the market. However, he claimed that production costs this year are somewhat higher compared to the previous year.
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Chandina Upazila Agriculture Officer Muhammad Morshed Alam stated that as early winter vegetable cultivation is profitable, this farming is expanding day by day. Through this, farmers are becoming self-reliant, he noted. The agricultural department is providing necessary advice and cooperation to farmers to boost production.
It is crucial to regularly monitor farmers' production costs, yield conditions, management of pests and diseases, and market sales experiences to understand how effective this agricultural support is at the field level. Additionally, providing farmers with timely information regarding the demand and market prices of early vegetables will make it easier for them to make informed decisions regarding crop selection and marketing.
— Daily Best News Desk • Fearless in the search for truth
Reported by T.R. Didar, Chandina (Comilla) Correspondent • Edited by the Daily Best News desk. Send corrections to [email protected].
