Climate change poses a big threat to agriculture
Every year flash flood damages seedbed, vegetables, paddy, roads, culvert, irrigation channels, houses and trees in the district. Downward movement of water incurs land fallow, yield loss in rice and vegetable cultivation
Muhammad Anisur Rahman Akanda
Climate change is posing a serious threat to the Agriculture, including paddy fields and vegetables gardens in five frontier upazilas of the Sherpur district nowadays. Flash flood ( down ward movement of water table), drought, dense fog, cold wave, acidic soil, halt storm and wild elephant attacks are considered the major climate change related problems or hazards in the district, said sources in the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) recently.
Every year flash flood damages seedbed, vegetables, paddy, roads, culvert, irrigation channels, houses and trees in the district. Downward movement of water incurs land fallow, yield loss in Boro rice and vegetable cultivation. Drought incurs land fallow, rice and vegetable cultivation. Dense fog or cold wave damages winter vegetables. Acidic soil causes severe yield loss to all kinds of vegetables and crops. Halt storm damages Boro paddy, vegetables and fruits. Wild elephant damages paddy, fruit and human lives. Climate change has a greater impact on agriculture in the frontier Jhinaigati and Nalitabari upazilas of the district when natural calamities occur. Acidic soil affects about 34 percent of land and 20 percent of different vegetable spices in the upazila in all the seasons. Halt storm damages 10-80 percent of Boro rice and vegetable cultivation in the months of March, April and May. Wild elephant damages 2-5 percent of standing crops during the periods of March-May and October-December.
Climate change has a negative impact that causes different hazards on agriculture in the frontier Nalitabari upazila of the district in different seasons when they occur. 1) Drought or downward movement of water table damages the 60pc standing crops (T-Aman, Boro and vegetable farming) due to the lack of proper irrigation system at Poragow, Nayabil, Ramchandrakora, Nonni, Kakorkandi, Ropnarayankora, Nalitabari and Bagbber in the upazila of the district during the months of Mid March-May, September and October every year. 2) Flash flood also damages paddy, seed bed, vegetables and fruits at Jogania, Bagbber, Kolasper, Morichporan, Rajnagar, Noyabil and Pourashaba during the months of May-July. 3) Dense fog or cold wave cures the 30pc loss of potato, Boro seed bed, tomato, cole crops, mustard and 20pc loss of onion yield from Mid-December till Mid-January. 4) Acidic soil damages the 30pc yield of vegetables and spices farming every year. 5) Hailstorm damages a total of 10-80pc of Boro rice and vegetables from March to May. 6) Wild elephants damage the 2-5pc standing crops from March to May and from October to December.
In the year 2011 at Rabi season, different adaptation options were taken in the district to tackle climate change. Short duration Boro rice cultivation, maize and ground nut cultivations as an alternative enterprise, Rabi seed support for both community based vegetable farming and mixed fruit gardening and community based improve stove were adapted for climate change.
In the year 2012 at Kharif-2 season, some options were adapted in the district for climate change. Integrated HS farming, community based Farmer Yard Manure (FYM) to improve soil health and stove, T-Aman and mustard cropping systems and fruit gardening were the main adaptation options of the climate change.
In the year 2013 at Rabi season, some adaptation options for climate change were taken as early mustard-Boro rice cropping pattern, ground nut farming as an alternative cultivation, hybrid maize cultivation, community based improve stove, community based FYM, cassava, sex faromen in cucurbits, bee keeping, awareness rising activities, field days and motivational tour in the affected areas of the district.
In the year 2013 at Kharif-1 season, climate change adaptation options were taken in the district. They were NERICA mustard, community based FYM to improve soil health and stove, green manuring Block, community based ginger cultivation, community based seed preservation, cucumber cultivation, and community based sex pheromone in cucurbits, Teasel ground cultivation, Tusa jute cultivation and Aus rice cultivation. Apart from those, at the Kharif-2 season, some steps were also taken in the district. Those are early T-Aman, fruit gardening, community based FYM to improve soil health and stove, using of tape pipe for supplementary irrigation and Block basis using of stable bleaching powder and sex pheromone.
Farmer Yard Manure (FYM) or composed fertilizer is distributed to the farmers to cultivate Boro paddy and vegetables as Boro cultivation (mother gas) is a great threat to environment.
Polythine dry seedbed is used for rising Boro seedlings. Farmers are also advised to cultivate short duration rice cultivation (BRRI-26, 28, Aman-33, 39, Aus-48, Bina-7, 14). Utility of Stove called Bondow Cholah can save 33pc fuel. In addition, paddy and wheat ripper machines, weeder, food pump, LLP pump, Hydrometre, rain and gause are also given to the farmers. Baul song, folk song, training and workshop on Disaster Risk Reduction, rally, advocacy meeting, discussion and field day are frequently organized for the farmers in the district to increase public awareness about climate change. Three climate field schools have recently been established in the Begpara Rajnagar, Gograkandi, Poragow, three villages of the Nalitabari upazila while more three climate schools have been set up in the Salda Noyapara, Gagrakonapara and Danshal, three villages under Jhinaigati upazila of the district in 2014.
More than 200 people were killed and thousands were injured in the attack of the wild elephants in the frontier Garo Hills of the district over the last 20 years, shows Statistics, adding that more than five hundreds of tribal people have become disabled due to the attacks of wild elephants. On 11 June 2014 early in the morning, the wild elephants killed a woman at the frontier Kandapara village under Singaborona union in the Shreebordi upazila of the district. The deceased was identified as Amesa Begum, 45, wife of late Saidur Rahman, an inhabitant of the frontier Kandapara village in the Shreebordi upazila, said locals. When the elephants were damaging the paddy fields in the frontier villages, a group of frontier people started driving away them with lighting and different weapons. But the elephants were attacking the people and made them climb up the hills leaving their homes. At one point, Amesa Begum was killed in the attack of the elephants. In the present situation, about 50, 000 frontier tribal people are now passing day and night in fear of will elephants attack in the frontier villages. As a result, they have to take shelters in the safer places leaving their homes and property because of fear of the elephants. Now the frontier farmers have become unemployed and day labourers. They are fruitlessly trying to drive away the wild elephants from the border areas by lighting, firing, producing electricity and also by using different types of ways and weapons.
Almost, every night wild elephants come from India to Sherpur, attack the frontier people, eat and damage vast areas of the ripe paddy fields and vegetables gardens across the frontier villages of the district, said local sources. Every year about 8,000 acres of cultivable land is damaged and hundreds of acres of cultivable land become wasteland, said Md. Anowar Ullah, Chairman of Kagsha Union under Jhinaigati Upazila, adding that those elephants are also and eating and damaging fruity trees like Jackfruits, pineapples, bananas, bamboos, houses and properties in the frontier villages of the district.
The wild elephants are now seen ransacking Borow Gasni, Sotow Gasni, Noksi, Halchati, Barowmari, Nakogow, Somoschora, Baligori and Kharamora, the frontier villages under Shreebordi upazila when Border Security Force (BSF) drive away those elephants from India and they can easily enter the frontier villages crossing border. The attack of the wild elephants in the Garo Hills is a nightmare of the frontier people, said Former Nalitabari Upazila Chairman Bodiuzzaman Badsa.
The frontier people of the district are highly advised to spread jute fiber and the powder of dry chilly in the bordering areas as a means of preventing the wild elephants accordance to the elephant researchers and different NGOs (World Vision). Agriculture Minister Motia Chowdhury has taken cane cultivation project while Former whip Jahed Ali Chowdhury took the bee cultivation project to drive away the wild elephants from the frontier areas, said different sources. Agriculture Extension Department has also taken another decision on planting thorny trees or plum plantation in the frontier areas of the district to test the nature of the elephants.
At present the government has announced the compensation for the loss caused by the wild elephants, said District Administration sources, adding that TK one lakh for death, TK 50,000 for injury and TK 25,000 for the damage of the houses and property have been allocated to the family of the victims.
Anyway, the environmentalists and activists demanded separate budgetary allocations to face the ill effects of climate change. The Network on Climate Change, Bangladesh (NCCB) came with the demand at a human chain and demonstration held at the turning point of Newmarket in the Sadar Upazila of the district on March 31, 2015. Speakers at the human chain spoke on developing model ecosystems in coastal areas, draught areas, flat plain, hills and marshlands. They also recommended strengthening climate fund, by pressing for an eight-point demand including the immediate application of laws to minimize green house emissions and implementation of law with obligation. A small number of environment networks (NOBOLOK, CCDR, ASD, BASA, CBSDP and SHARI) have jointly recently organized the similar human chains at different districts across the country.
The writer is a PhD candidate, Shanghai University, China
