The government has fixed a target of producing 5,051 tonnes of six varieties of pulses from 3,325 hectares of land for all five districts of Rangpur agriculture region during this Rabi season.
Officials of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) said farmers have already started sowing pulse seeds with huge enthusiasm both in the mainland and riverine char areas across the region.
The fixed target includes production of 2,128 tonnes of lentil from 1,258 hectares of land, 2,270 tonnes of 'Khesari' from 1,630 hectares, 72 tonnes of 'Arhar' from 67 hectares, 156 tonnes of gram from 77 hectares, 393 tonnes mungbean from 293 hectares and 32 tonnes of cowpea from 22 hectares of land.
"The DAE and other organisations are providing training, quality seeds, technologies and inputs to farmers to make the pulse farming programme successful," said Additional Director of the DAE for Rangpur region Agriculturist Mohammad Shah Alam.
The government through the DAE is distributing high quality seeds of lentil, mung-bean and Khesari varieties of pulses and fertilisers as cost-free incentives to small and marginal farmers to inspire them in enhancing farming of pulses.
In addition, the government through different commercial banks continues disbursing easy-term agriculture loans to farmers to encourage them in bringing more land under cultivation of pulses to enhance production.
Farmers have already brought 637 hectares of land under cultivation of these six varieties of pulses as the process of sowing seeds is getting momentum with the progress of harvesting Aman rice.
"After getting better production and rewarding market prices in recent years, fervent farmers are expected to exceed the fixed farming target of pulses and achieve a bumper production during this season," Alam added.
Deputy Director of the DAE for Rangpur region Agriculturist Mahbubar Rahman said there is a huge potential to enhance pulse production in the region despite cultivation of various other winter crops following crop diversification.
"We have put special importance on exploring the prevailing prospect to increase pulse production through increasing its cultivation by adopting latest agriculture technologies and using high yielding varieties of seeds," he said. Deputy Director (Leave Reserved) of the DAE at Khamarbari in Dhaka Abu Sayem stressed on adoption of mixed, relay and intercropping methods to increase farming of pulses with other crops and enhance production to attain self-reliance on pulses.
Farmers Nurul Islam, Aminur Rahman, Jafar Ahmed and Anwar Hossain of different villages in Rangpur said they are sowing seeds of different varieties of pulses on their croplands in the mainland after harvesting Aman rice.
Farmers Hossain Ali, Abdur Razzaque and Mahbub Alam of different char and riverside villages in Rangpur said they are bringing more char land under pulse cultivation this time after getting repeated bumper production and lucrative prices in recent years.