Changing fate by cultivating unused land

Some 30 unemployed youths in Kamalganj upazila have improved fertility of about 90 bighas of fallow land following organic method.

The soil in Patrokhola area is losing its fertility day by day due to paddy cultivation for years, said local farmer Ramen Das.

Due to this, huge high lands in the border area have remained uncultivated for long, he said, adding that as the growers in the area used to cultivate paddy on the land, they never tried to grow other crops.

But the unemployed youths from Adampur village, about 20 km away from Patrokhola, have successfully produced tomatoes there following organic method of cultivation, said Ramen. 

Inspired by the youths, local growers are now cultivating tomatoes on their land and getting bumper yield.      

The youths took lease of each bigha of fallow land from farmers in Patrokhola area paying them Tk 5,000 to Tk 7,000 two years ago and since then they did not look back. 

One of the youths, Khalku Mia said it was really tough for me to run their five-member family alone as they have no land. In 2018, he and some of his friends took lease of the land from the farmers in the border area and planted tomatoes there following organic method of cultivation.  

They are now getting bumper yield and good prices for the vegetable, he said.

Khalku’s friend Tawhidul Islam said he has been cultivating tomatoes on the lands for the last two years.

This season, he cultivated early variety of tomato plants on five bighas of land spending Tk 4 lakh, said Tawhidul, adding that he has already sold tomatoes for Tk 3 lakh till now and the sale will continue till March.

Vegetable traders from different areas of Habiganj, Sylhet and Dhaka are coming to buy tomatoes from the fields in Patrokhola area, said Tawhidul.

Another youth Md Shimul said earlier, he cultivated paddy on the land, but it did not bring any profit for him. Later, tomato was cultivated on the lands and he is now getting good yield for the vegetable.

Kazi Lutful Bari, deputy director (DD) of Department of Agricultural Extension in Moulvibazar, said the young farmers have really taken a good initiative by improving fertility of the fallow land following organic method.

He further said tomatoes have been cultivated on 1050 hectares of land this year. Kamalganj is the highest tomato producing upazila.

Those young farmers are also getting fair prices for the vegetable, said the DD.