90pc of paddy harvested in Haor region, says govt

Farmers have already harvested about 90.02 percent of the Boro paddy sowed in the Haors or backswamps of Bangladesh amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, according to the government.

Agricultural Minister Abdur Razzaque underscored the latest development in an online media briefing at the Secretariat on Tuesday.

Boro paddy was cultivated across 454,399 hectares of wetlands this year, with 400,906 hectares yielding harvests, said Razzaque.

Moreover, 25 percent of the Boro paddy cultivated across the country has been harvested, the minister noted.

"We are hoping the country's flat land paddy harvesting will be completed by mid-June," said Razzaque.

“Paddy is being harvested in a very festive atmosphere. The weather has been favourable this time.”

The agriculture minister also said 350,000 farmers have been tasked with harvesting paddy in the Haor regions.

According to the Department of Agricultural Extension, Boro paddy has been cultivated on 445,399 hectares of wetlands across seven districts of Kishoreganj, Netrokona, Sunamganj, Moulvibazar, Habiganj, Sylhet and Brahmanbaria.

This year’s target for Boro rice production is 20.4 million tonnes, with the yields from the Haor regions making up 20 percent of it.

The government has enforced a countrywide lockdown since Mar 26 in a bid to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The public transport system has also been shut down, resulting in a scarcity of workers to help farmers harvest paddy in the Haors.

Later, the administration arranged for helping hands from different parts of the country to cut the crop.