A few days left for the arrival of winter, date juice extractors in Chuadanga district are passing busy times for preparing their date trees (clearing the top of the date tree) to extract date juice in four upazilas of the district. On the other hand, blacksmith are making weapons like daos, boro gach kata daos for the extractors. Potters are also making jars (so-called bhar) now.
It may be mentioned that the winter season has not come yet. But early they have been doing different works for date juice in expectation of high rate. Date juice is one of the most cherished products of winter in Bangladesh.
The extractors (gachhis) are now desperately busy to prepare the date trees for date juice. At the same time, they are also busy preparing the boiling places for juice and collecting other necessary tools, including the gachhi daos, needed for trimming date trees. The people of the other professions are also busy for doing a brisk business.
Azizul Hoque Mollik of village Boalia in sadar upazila of the district said they work for gur (mosaless) production, as its production expenditure is low and profit is high.
The potters are busy making necessary clay-pots (bhar) for holding date juice on the date trees by the gachhis. The iron workshops have been making various sizes of tin made flat-jars for boiling juice.
The pivot, the gachhis are seen moving from one tree to another for the preparation of the trees and this is the common scene in all the villages here now-a-days. From time immemorial, the winter season brings a festive mood among the rural people of the district by extracting of juice and preparing patali gur.
According to Agriculture Extension Department 2,13,150 date trees are in the district. About 2,359 metric tons of gur are expected to be produced in the season.
It may be mentioned here that 1025 matric tones of gur will be produced by extracting 85450 date trees in sadar upazila, 234 matric tones by extracting 19500 date trees in Alamdanga upazila, 280 matric tones of gur by extracting 35000 date trees in Jibannagar upazila and 820 matric tones of gur by extracting 73200 date trees in Damurhuda upazila.
Winter, thus, is also the season of cakes. Preparation of various kinds of cakes cannot be thought without molasses of date juice. The solid molasses is locally known as patali, the best quality patali is called ‘Nalini Patali’. It is very much relishing. This molasses is prepared by boiling date juice. Besides the pure date juice is also very tasty to drink.
Chuadanga district is very much famous for date juice, molasses and high quality patali gur. Date trees grow abundantly in these areas due to favourable climate.
Ali Hasan, Deputy Director of Agriculture Extension Department said farmers of the areas take part to extract the date trees for gur in their own initiative. It is their traditional act.