Sunflower cultivation gaining popularity in Manikganj

BSS, Manikganj :
Sunflower cultivation has been gaining popularity among the farmers of the district, the Department of Agriculture Extension sources said.
Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) sources said the farmers are showing keen interest to cultivate Sunflower in their fellow lands especially in the char areas of the Padma and the Jamuna as they can earn more profits from it.
A total of 23 hectares of land have already been cultivated in the district this year. But, DAE earlier set a target of cultivating Sunflower on 40 hectares of land in the district with a production target 48 metric tones of oil during this season.
Deputy Director of DAE Abu Mohammad Enayet Ullah told BSS, the DAE distributed improved quality seeds of Sunflower among the farmers of the district.
The crops specialists and field-workers of DAE continued rendering their field-level service to let the cultivators know about the modern cultivation methods to cultivate Sunflower crops through using latest technologies by reducing production costs.
The sources said the cultivation is continuing all over the district, adding that last year Sunflower was cultivated on 76 hectares of land although the DAE set a target to cultivate on 20 hectares of land.
 
Incentives distributed among farmers for Robi crops cultivate
The Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) has distributed seeds and fertilizers as special incentives among 10,430 poor and marginal farmers of the district for boosting the cultivation of Robi crops in all seven upazilas here, officials sources said today.
The distribution of seeds and fertilizers has already been completed among 10,430 farmers to cultivate wheat, maize, mustard, sunflower, groundnut, onion, mug and khesari on their lands during the current season.
The DAE officials said, each of the farmers got 20 kilograms(KGs) of wheat seeds including 10 KGs Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) and 10-kgs Muriate of Potash (MoP) free of cost for one bigha land, one KG mustard seed,10-kgs Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) and 10-kgs Muriate of Potash (MoP) for one bigha land, 2 kgs of maize seeds including 10-kgs Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) and 10-kgs Muriate of Potash (MoP) for one bigha land, 10 kgs of groundnut seeds including 10 kgs of Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) and 10-kgs Muriate of Potash (MoP) for one bigha land, one KG sunflower seed including10 kgs of Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) and 10-kg Muriate of Potash (MoP) for one bigha land, one kg of onion seed including 10-kgs Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) and 5-kgs Muriate of Potash (MoP) for one bigha land, 5 KG of mug seed including 10-kgs Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) and 5-kgs Muriate of Potash (MoP) for one bigha of land and 8 KGs of khesari seeds including 10 KGs of Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) and 10-kgs of Muriate of Potash (MoP) for one bigha land free of cost.
Most of the field level farmers have already completed cultivation of their Robi crops for the current season.
Abu Muhammad Enayetullah, Deputy Director of the DAE, said the list of small and marginal farmers of the district was prepared from union parishad level by a committee comprising with sub-assistant agriculture officer and the chairmen and members of the respective unions, adding that the seeds and fertilizers were distributed according to those lists. The Deputy Director also said the present pro-farmer government is distributing special agriculture incentives among the small and marginal farmers which is encouraging to the farmers to cultivate crops in due time and they are getting good production as the government distributed quality seeds among the farmers.