Greater Sylhet Region

Drought-like situation dims Boro prospect

22 March 2009, 18:00 PM

Iqbal Siddiquee, Sylhet

Like many other areas in Sylhet region, this Boro field in Golapganj upazila turning yellowish due to lack of irrigation water.Photo: STAR

The ongoing drought-like situation dims the prospect of this year's Boro cultivation in north-eastern greater Sylhet region. Sources of surface water like the natural streams and narrow canals as well as ponds and other water bodies in the region have already gone dried while the underground water layer has gone down, making irrigation a tough task for farmers. During a visit to different haor areas in Sunamganj district on Saturday, this correspondent saw that Boro lands dried up while plants turned yellowish in Baon Beel, Kanglar Haor and Dekhar Haor. Plants are yet to see sprouting and the situation will deteriorate much if it does not rain within days, said Abdul Majid, a 60-year-old farmer in Dekhar Haor. Crop fields on higher lands are more vulnerable, he said. The farmers in vast haor areas in the region are dependent on their single crop -- Boro paddy. This year Boro paddy has been cultivated on 4.36 lakh hectares of land in four districts of Sylhet division, although the target was on 4.17 lakh hectares, said a Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) official yesterday. The farming area this year got a rise as farmers eyed good profit against the backdrop of higher price of Boro last year, said DAE officials. “But things may go much wrong this time. Even if it rains within a week, there will be chance to have only 60 percent crop,” 70-year-old Nur Miah of village Hashkury in Sunamganj Sadar upazila said yesterday. “The drought has already caused much harm to Boro paddy fields, which is considered the main crop of the region. Water sources have dried up. Use of irrigation equipment in the region is very limited for different reasons,” said DAE Deputy Director in the Sylhet divisional office. The situation is a little more critical in Habiganj district, where deep tube-wells are not working due to abnormal fall in the underground water level.