In front of a government quarter called Chandana at the Kumarkhali upazila parishad in Kushtia, the upazila social services officer has planted a vegetable garden. Cucumber, aubergine, okra, snake gourd, red amaranth, Malabar spinach, stem amaranth and other vegetables grow there, meeting the needs of the officer and several other families.

The officer, Mohammad Ali, said he made the chemical-free garden in line with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's directive that not an inch of land be left uncultivated. He tends it in his spare time, and its vegetables feed his own family and others.

It is not only this quarter. With help from the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), there are similar mixed vegetable gardens at no fewer than 10 places on the parishad premises, including the upazila agriculture, social services, women's affairs and poverty alleviation offices, the assistant commissioner's office and the UNO's residence. They meet the vegetable needs of officials' and staff families, and encourage people from all walks of life who visit the upazila to grow vegetables.

A visit found nutrition gardens set up outside the parishad premises too, at Kumarkhali police station, Shilaidah Rabindra Kuthibari, Bashgram police camp, Panti union land office, home yards and elsewhere, growing fresh vegetables and fruit.

Al Amin, custodian of Shilaidah Rabindra Kuthibari, said his office has 48 staff including Ansar members. Together they have made several vegetable and fruit gardens on the Kuthibari grounds, and they no longer need to buy vegetables at the market.

SI Mostafizur Rahman, officer at Bashgram police camp, said he is growing vegetables on fallow land on the prime minister's instructions. The garden meets their vegetable needs and makes the camp more attractive, and he has given vegetables to many people visiting the camp.

Upazila agriculture officer Debashish Kumar Das said there are 750 gardens in the upazila, meeting household vegetable needs. Each garden was given seeds of 18 kinds of vegetable and 5 kinds of fruit, 10 kg each of organic and chemical fertiliser, netting for fencing and a watering can.

Kumarkhali upazila nirbahi officer Bitan Kumar Mondal said nutrition gardens are being set up everywhere, including educational institutions, the health complex, union parishads and police camps. He said he is working so that not an inch of land stays fallow.

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