Jute farmers in Gopalganj are getting good prices after a strong harvest. Depending on grade, jute is selling at Tk 4,700 to 5,300 a maund in the district's markets, Tk 1,000 to 1,500 more than last year, as mills and stockists compete to buy, Dhaka Tribune reports.
The Department of Agricultural Extension had targeted 24,859 hectares across the district's five upazilas; farmers planted 25,686. Output reached 52,656 tonnes, 1,696 tonnes above the target of 50,960.
Bhatiapara in Kashiani is the district's largest jute market. Sitting where Gopalganj, Faridpur and Narail meet and linked by river, rail and road, it trades 1,000 to 2,000 maunds across 120 wholesale stalls between dawn and 10am on market days, Friday and Monday, said Niamul Haque Sharif, president of the jute traders' association. Wholesaler Shamim Sheikh said prices had dropped to Tk 3,500 to 3,800 early in the season when mills briefly stopped buying and paying; they rose once mills and stockists returned.
Dr Md Mamunur Rahman, deputy director of the district agriculture office, said producing a maund of jute costs farmers Tk 3,500 to 3,800, leaving a net profit of Tk 1,200 to 1,500 a maund. If prices hold, he expects more jute to be grown next year.
The weather helped too. Abu Sufian, acting officer at the Gopalganj weather office, said the district had 1,351 millimetres of rain from June to September, making retting easy. Farmers Mofizur Rahman Sheikh of Barashur in Kashiani and Pannu Sheikh of Lohagara in Narail said ample water made retting simple, and with profits above Tk 1,000 a maund they plan to grow more.
Reporting: Monoj Kumar Saha, Dhaka Tribune
Photo: Rupon Das / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Source: Dhaka Tribune
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