Paddy harvest halfway done in Sunamganj's Haor fields, but farmers worry about prices

Harvest season is in full swing across the Haors, or wetlands, of Kishoreganj's Austagram Upazila. The landscape near Shibani Barman’s home in Krishnapur village is a sea of golden paddy. Farmers are harvesting their crops in a festive mood, overjoyed by the good yields.

Standing on the edge of the Haor, Shibani smiled and said: “This Boishakh has been kind to us. There won't be any losses this year.”

Across the Haor region, farmers like Shibani are in a buoyant mood. Favourable weather has led to a successful Boro season, and more than half the paddy fields have already been harvested without any major setbacks.

According to the Department of Agricultural Extension, 62 percent of the Haor’s paddy had been harvested as of Friday, and across the entire district, including non-Haor areas, 52 percent of the crop was in.

Karchar Haor, spread across Sunamganj Sadar and Austagram Upazilas, is buzzing with activity. Deep inside the Haor, farmers with sickles are harvesting by hand, while on the higher ground, machines are speeding up the process.

Threshing and drying activities fill the air with a festive buzz, and the fields are alive with families -- even children -- helping to pile up, dry, and bag the rice. Farmers are also drying straw to store as cattle feed for the rainy season.

Mahmudul Islam, a farmer from Mukti Khola village, said: “I farmed seven kiyar (local unit) of land. Six are already harvested, just one more left. With another 4–5 days of good weather, we’ll finish. This year, we're not worried about losses.”

This year, 4,220 hectares of land in Karchar Haor were cultivated -- 1,520 in Sunamganj Sadar and 2,700 in Austagram -- out of a total Haor area of more than 10,000 hectares.

By Thursday, the lower-lying fields had been completely harvested, and farmers had begun cutting crops from the elevated sections.

Farmers reported excellent yields from varieties like BR-92, BR-88, and BR-29, along with hybrids like Jolok and Suravi — which they affectionately call "big paddy". They were getting 20 to 25 maunds per kiyar, with many fields doing even better.

The Department of Agricultural Extension reported no shortage of workers or machines, thanks to the deployment of 955 combine harvesters, 116 reapers, and over 193,000 labourers.

According to Austagram’s Agricultural Officer Asaduzzaman, a combine harvester can cut about 30 bighas of paddy daily, while a reaper can cut 5 bighas. A worker manually harvests about 15 decimals each day.

Farmers like Shipul Barman from Krishnapur village said harvesting went smoothly this year. There were no problems with machines or weather.

Ruhul Amin, another farmer from Radhanagar, said: “Our crops were excellent this year. In another 4–5 days, the whole Haor will be harvested.”

He added that he had no issues with floods or storms this year, and the paddy dried properly even with light rain.

Ayub Khan, another farmer, said he planted BR-88 variety on 10 kiyar and harvested 20 maunds per kiyar.

“This harvest has brought us joy. If every year were like this, there would be no hardship.”

Farmers hope the income from this year’s paddy will easily cover expenses like weddings, education, healthcare, and household needs.

Meanwhile, at Dekhar Haor -- another large Haor stretching across Sunamganj Sadar, Shantiganj, and Dowarabazar Upazilas -- about half of the harvest is complete, farmers said.

Abdul Jalil from Bahadurpur village said, “I farmed 10 kiyar, harvested 4. If the weather holds for 8–10 more days, we’ll finish.”

Azim Uddin, another farmer, added: “Dekhar Haor's harvest is halfway done. I’ve already cut 6 out of 18 kiyar. The yield is good.”

However, farmers expressed frustration over low paddy prices.

Middlemen are offering just Tk 900 per maund, according to Azim.

“If we take paddy to government warehouses, they reject it saying it's not dry enough. Real farmers are being pushed out.”

According to the agriculture department, this year about 223,530 hectares of land have been cultivated with Boro rice across Sunamganj. The expected production is around 1.4 million tonnes of paddy, aiming for 921,413 tonnes of rice, worth an estimated Tk 52 billion.

This year’s top-performing varieties include BR-88, BR-81, BR-89, BR-92, and hybrids like Syngenta, Hira-1, Hira-2, Suravi, Ispahani, Jholok Raj, and Moyna.

Deputy Director of Agricultural Extension Mustafa Azad said, “We’ve had a bumper harvest. Farmers are getting 25–30 maunds per bigha. Good weather, plenty of workers and machinery -- the harvest is progressing smoothly. We expect farmers to make a good profit this year.”