The 'Baromashi' canal in Kamalla, a border village in Munshirhat union of Feni's Fulgazi upazila, has changed the face of local farming. Because water flows in the canal all year, the village has become a centre for growing chemical-free vegetables.

With no shortage of irrigation water, farmers in the area grow a range of vegetables on their land all year round, changing their own fortunes and setting a new example in farming.

Local farmers say that once a single crop of Aman rice a year was their main hope. For the rest of the year many depended on fishing or day labour. Over time, that picture has changed.

Farmers say the key to this success is the 'Baromashi' canal, which is known locally by this name because water flows into it all year from the high hills of India. Although they have long demanded a permanent sluice gate on the canal, it has not yet been built. So the farmers build a temporary dam on the canal on their own initiative, with voluntary labour, to store irrigation water. This has brought great success in vegetables as well as Aman rice, and the effort has gradually spread across the whole village.

A visit found 20-25 farmers in the village growing tomato, cucumber, bitter gourd, chilli, yardlong bean, snake gourd and other native vegetables on about 10-12 kani of land. No harmful chemicals or pesticides are used; safe food is produced with organic fertiliser.

Local people said that where uncertainty was once farmers' constant companion, chemical-free vegetable farming has now become the key to their self-reliance. They said the initiative built around the canal could be a model not just for Kamalla but for farmers elsewhere in the country.

Local farmer Nurul Amin said: "I used to grow only Aman rice. Now I grow vegetables all year and sell these chemical-free vegetables in Feni town. Demand is high, so I get a good price." He said he earns up to about Tk 1 lakh a year, and that because they use organic fertiliser their vegetables taste good, so demand is higher.

Farmers Abul Kalam Azad and Wazi Ullah said they are getting good yields from improved native varieties. Abul Kalam Azad said: "Native varieties are disappearing among all the hybrids. But we have seen that native varieties also give good yields. Growing vegetables has made us financially well off."

Farmers said they also use modern techniques: sex pheromone traps and yellow cards to control insects, mulching to conserve soil moisture, and clear covers. This is cutting production costs and raising yields.

Rubi Afroz, sub-assistant agriculture officer for Munshirhat union, said mulching reduces weeds, keeps moisture in the soil and lowers costs. Seeing Nurul Amin's success, many farmers are now becoming interested in growing vegetables, she said. If a sluice gate could be built on the Baromashi canal, farm production in the area would rise further and farmers would benefit more, she added.

Fulgazi upazila agriculture officer Md Khorshed Alam said the border village of Kamalla has now become a thriving centre of native vegetable production.

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