Maize farming is likely to exceed the target in Jhenaidah as the farmers are gaining a very upright output of the crop. It ensures almost double profit than the traditional cultivation of paddy, wheat or jute.
The maize farmers of the area said the farming will help strengthen the socio-economic base of ours.
A local farmer Shahin and some other farmers at village Chandpur and Hakimpur villages under Harinakundu upazila said that they have been expanding the maize farming area every year as they are getting more benefit from the crop than others.
A number of farmers in the area either have cultivated maize on additional land, or brought new plots to cultivate the crop in the current season.
Shahin said that he brought 54 decimals of land for the maize farming in this season. He is expecting 50 maunds of maize on each bigha of land and sale them at Taka 40,000. Net profit from the crop will be 25,000. No other cereal crop could provide this amount of profit for farmers.
“Local sub assistant agriculture of the DAE in Chandpur block Ramendu Kumar Biswas has been rendering all out cooperation to make his farming a success,” he said.
According to the office of the Deputy Director at Jhenaidah Khamarbari, the farmers have started farming maize since late December and continue till mid March at the late stage. The sources said the DAE had set a target to produce 205,013 tones of maize on a total of 19,250 hectares of lad in six upazilas of the district during the season Production target of maize on each hectare was expected 10.65 tones. Till February 15, the farmers brought 17,291 hectares of land under the maize farming. Upazila wise land for the farming was 3,500 hectares in Jhenaidah Sadar, 1,850 hectares in Kaliganj, 3,521 hectares in Kotchandpur, 6,250 hectares in bordering Moheshpur, 270 hectares in Shailkupa and 1,900 hectares of and in Harinakundu.
They said the farmers will continue the seed sowing till mid March and at least another 400 hectares of land will be brought in the season. The farmers in the district in the last season had brought a total of 18,500 hectares of land under the faring and produced 194,250 tones of maize at the rate of 10.50 tones on each hectare on an average, DAE sources said.
Asgar Ali, DAE deputy director of Jhenaidah when contacted said the popularity of cereal food grain like maize is increasing day by day as diversified use of the food grains getting popularity in large scale nationally. Bread, biscuits, cake, chips and other food items are widely prepared from maize as it has been adding value with other foods countrywide. Moreover, huge quantity of maize is consumed in poultry and dairy sectors as feeds round the year.
The farmers are considering a good financial benefit expanding the area of maize farming. It will obviously enhance their financial capability, DAE Deputy Director said.