For a decade Ali Akbar Sheikh has made a living farming land he sharecrops from others. He once grew paddy, but last year, hoping for extra profit, he planted sugarcane on one bigha. Natural disaster destroyed the crop and he lost Tk 60,000. The young farmer did not give up: he borrowed and planted sugarcane again this year, on a smaller area. From 10 katha of land he made a profit of more than Tk 70,000 this season.

Ali Akbar, of Fultala village in Kachua upazila of Bagerhat, said: "Last year the disaster was severe and most farmers in our area lost money. This year the yield is good and I got a good price. But I farm on borrowed money and have to repay the debt from last year's loss. I worry how I will feed my family of four through the year. Farmers get not even a little help from the agriculture office to get back on their feet."

Sugarcane grower Firoz Ahmed from the same area said: "Sugarcane is very costly to grow. You have to apply phosphate, TSP and potash fertiliser, and spray five or six times. Their prices keep rising. No one looks at our troubles, and we get no fertiliser or pesticide from the agriculture office. But this time there is a bumper crop, and the market is lively every market day."

At Badhal Bazar in Kachua upazila, the market fills with the shouts of buyers and sellers as soon as dawn breaks. From early morning, sugarcane brought by van, pickup and truck from different parts of the district is bought and sold.

The market committee says sugarcane worth Tk 15 to 20 lakh is sold at the market on Sundays and Thursdays. From farmers, through wholesalers, the cane goes to different parts of the country. Every hundred canes sell wholesale for Tk 3,000 to 5,000, depending on quality and size.

Local trader Al Amin said: "I have traded sugarcane at this market for about 30 years. People come from Bhola, Patuakhali, Barguna, Jashore, Barishal and other areas to buy here. Sugarcane worth Tk 8 to 10 lakh is sold at Badhal Bazar on each market day, both retail and wholesale."

Khan Shahiduzzaman Milton, leaseholder of Badhal Bazar, said: "Sugarcane is grown on a large part of Kachua. Wholesalers come to Badhal Bazar from Satkhira, Khulna, Rangpur and other places. They are looked after carefully and given security, and no extra toll is charged, so they trade here comfortably."

According to the agriculture office, sugarcane has been grown on about 750 acres in Bagerhat this year, with a production target of about 11,000 tonnes. Md Motahar Hossain, deputy director of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) in Bagerhat, said: "The government gives incentives to paddy, mustard and sunflower farmers to encourage them. But there is no such incentive for sugarcane farmers."

He said: "Molasses and sugar are made from sugarcane. Every year sugar has to be imported to meet demand. If we encourage farmers with incentives, sugarcane cultivation can be increased further. We will recommend to senior officials or the DAE that sugarcane farmers be given incentives."

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.