After a successful potato crop, farmers in the surplus food-producing area of Joypurhat are now busy planting Boro rice seedlings all over the region.

The local Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) has set a target to cultivate Boro paddy on 69,725 hectares of land during the current 2023-2024 Rabi crop cultivation season.

As of February 17, Boro paddy seedlings have been planted on 14,000 hectares of land in the district. Joypurhat, known as a surplus food-producing district, has prepared Boro seeds under the comprehensive supervision of the Department of Agriculture to ensure successful Boro cultivation.

The target for cultivating Boro paddy on 69,725 hectares of land in the district is divided into 62,990 hectares for high-yielding variety (HYV) and 6,735 hectares for hybrid variety. The target for rice production is set at approximately 3 lakh metric tons.

The Boro cultivation targets, divided by Upazila, include 16,818 hectares in Sadar Upazila, 19,945 hectares in Panchbibi, 10,336 hectares in Akkelpur, 10,516 hectares in Khetlal, and 12,110 hectares in Kalai Upazila.

To ensure successful Boro cultivation, 3,358.4 hectares of land for the HYV variety and 398 hectares of land for the hybrid variety have been prepared as ideal seedbeds in the district.

The local Department of Agriculture has calculated the demand for fertilizers to ensure successful Boro paddy cultivation in the district. This includes 18,720 metric tons of urea, 14,400 metric tons of TSP, 9,576 metric tons of MOP, 9,000 metric tons of gypsum, and 792 metric tons of zinc fertilizer.

The BADC (Seed) has arranged to supply improved seeds to the farmers. Local banks, particularly the Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank, have initiated extensive programs to distribute agricultural loans among the farmers for Boro and other crops.

Rahela Parveen, Deputy Director of Agriculture (DAE), informed BSS that necessary training and advice are being provided to farmers at the field level to ensure successful Boro cultivation in the district.