Cyclone Mocha forces Chalanbeel farmers to begin harvesting paddy

Farmer Anisul Haque, of Boailmari village in Pabna's Chatmohar upazila under the Chalanbeel region, started harvesting paddy last week, even though it did not ripen fully.

He was rushing to harvest crops from his 10-bigha-land before Cyclone Mocha hits Bangladesh.

Like him, most farmers in the Chalanbeel region, one of the biggest crop-producing hubs in the country, started harvesting paddy early this month fearing damage from the cyclone.

"Almost 75 to 80 percent paddy has ripened in the field. If we had one more week, it would be 100 percent. But we couldn't wait because of the cyclone," Anis said.

Under the influence of the cyclone, farmers in the area fear that storms may damage their produce.

Photo: Collected

Farmer Abdul Jabbar, of the same village, meanwhile said they are expecting a bumper yield of paddy this year and are worried whether they would be able to harvest all of it.

Last year he was unable to harvest 20 to 30 percent crops due to a sudden gush of water coming into the Chalanbeel. He said he was more concerned about natural disasters this year.

Like them, most of the farmers in the vast Chalanbeel region in eight upazilas under Pabna, Sirajganj, and Natore district were busy in harvesting crops.

Talking with the Daily Star, Md Jamal Uddin, deputy director of the Pabna Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), however, said a total of 56,207 hectare of land were brought under Boro cultivation this year in nine upazilas of Pabna, targeting to produce 2.30 lakh metric tonnes of rice.

Already 16 percent of paddy have been harvested in the district while more than 30 percent corps has been reaped in Chatmohar upazila till Wednesday, he added.