A shortage of staff, waterlogging, a lack of good soil and weak infrastructure are holding back seedling production at the horticulture centre at Panchgachhia in Feni, leaving local farmers without the service they expect from it, Krishi Shomoy reports.
The centre has 16 approved posts for workers but only five are filled. Three of its four guard posts have been vacant for a long time. With so few hands, regular work across the centre's large grounds cannot be kept up.
Without enough drainage, even light rain floods the centre. Water standing on the low beds spoils the soil, which locals describe as turning sour, so fewer good-quality seedlings can be raised and seedlings already grown are sometimes lost to rainwater. The centre also badly needs sheds to keep seedlings and seed, and good soil.
Deputy director Nayan Moni Sutradhar said the severe labour shortage forces the centre to hire day labourers from outside at higher wages, which hurts its balance of income and spending. Some beds are low-lying, so rainwater collects and spoils the soil, disrupting production, he said.
People involved say that filling the vacant posts quickly, improving drainage, repairing the internal roads and building sheds and other facilities could double the centre's seedling output, meeting more of the demand from farmers in the Feni region and raising government revenue.
Photo: Nazmulhuqrussell / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Source: Krishi Shomoy
Comments
(0)