Growing less-water consuming crops
Farmers in the
parched Barind area need appropriate training, knowledge and motivation on how to cultivate more less-irrigated crops coupled with quality seeds
While addressing a daylong training session titled - Wheat and Paddy Seed Production, Processing and Cultivation of Less Water Consuming Crops held at BMDA conference hall in Rajshahi, the chairman of Barind Multipurpose Development Authority (BMDA), stressed on the enormous scopes of increasing the acreage of various low-water consuming crops like wheat, black gram, sesame, lentil, maize and mugdal in Rajshahis high Barind tract.
The call for growing less-water consuming crops should be taken seriously, not only for the sake of easing the pressure on decreasing underground water levels , but also for high nutritional value and for its relatively higher quantities of yield within limited land area. For instance, the meeting was told that wheat could be cultivated on seven to eight bighas of land with same amount of irrigation-water needed to irrigate one bigha of Boro rice through soil moisture utilisation and the best uses of modern technologies. Such huge potentials lying within crops like wheat should be exploited and popularized among farmers.
In many countries, wheat has been playing an important role in ensuring food security as its consumption and popularity has been on the rise. However, currently Bangladesh produces hardly a million ton of wheat against a growing demand of around four million tonnes annually. Our food and agriculture authorities should focus on this particular crop beside other less-water consuming items.
Besides growing newer varieties of crops, it has much to do with getting habituated on consuming them too. Its right here where the factor of acquired taste matters. The fact is that, our farmers, people and agricultural authorities will have to come to a quick realisation given the fast depletion of ground water table - there is no alternative other than to encouraging the farmers for promoting various cereal crops and vegetables instead of only Irri-Boro paddy on ourvast expanses of dried land in the North and West of thecountry.
Nevertheless, in order to materialise the dream for growing less-irrigated crops we need to work together. In fact, the general call for focusing more on less-water consuming crops by the BMDA chief is aimed at all concerned authorities and farmers to come forward and work together to this end. Last but not least, farmers in the parched Barind area need appropriate training, knowledge and motivation on how to cultivate more less-irrigated crops coupled with quality seeds.
