Beans worth billions taka being sold in Ishwardi every day
Ishwardi (Pabna) Correspondent :
‘Rupban’ variety of beans is popular in Muladuli area of Ishwardi. Farmers have become interested in bean cultivation due to its good yield and high disease resistance. Farmers have a smile of success as the price is higher than the cost of early bean cultivation. Ishwardi’s Muladuli is an example of how bean cultivation can change the fate of people in the area. Young people have become self-reliant by farming farms instead of chasing jobs. Hundreds of farmers in Mooladuli area have become millionaires just by cultivating beans. Apart from Mooladuli of Ishwardi, about 25 thousand people of neighboring Atgharia, Baraigram and Lalpur are involved in bean cultivation. However, due to the strike-blockade, the farmers are being deprived of getting fair price for the beans, farmers and traders have complained. The wholesalers are also not able to benefit much as the transport fare has increased by 2-3 times.
Ishwardi’s mooladuli vegetables are now recognized as buyers and sellers. Beans worth crores of taka are being bought and sold every day. At the beginning of the season, the market was high, but now the prices have come down. With the gathering of traders, wholesalers and foragers from different parts of the country, Muladuli Arat area is becoming a public forest. From early morning until late at night, the sale goes on.
Traders at Muladuli Hut said that 35 to 40 truckloads of beans are traded and sent to different parts of the country every day. Ishwardi beans are being shipped to different places of the country including capital city, Chittagong, Comilla, Mymensingh, Sylhet, Narayanganj. Beans are being sold at wholesale rates of Tk 800 to Tk 1000 per maund and Tk 20 to Tk 25 per kg. If you calculate, about one crore worth of beans are bought and sold just to grow the roots. On Sunday (November 26) mooladuli can be seen blooming, the beans stacked like little pahars all over the area. Due to lack of space, the problem has spread to the surrounding areas. Rahim Pramanik of Mooladuli Farm said that during the season of beans, farmers from Ishwardi and surrounding villages brought beans to this farm for sale. Traders and wholesalers from different parts of the country stay here to buy beans.
Aminur Rahman Babu alias Shim Babu, advisor and farmer of Artdar Samiti, said that almost thousands of laborers are making a living by harvesting and selling beans. As the weather is favorable, the farmers are getting good profit from growing beans this year. However, if the truck is empty for a day after the strike, the truck fare has to be paid 2-3 times more. As a result, farmers are suffering as wholesalers buy beans at low prices.
Central President of Bangladesh Farmers Development Society Siddiqur Rahman alias Kul Moize said that the wholesalers are facing obstacles in sending vegetables due to strike-blockade. Due to which the farmers are getting lower prices. He said that farmers will lose everything if this continues.
