Farmers in Manikganj district are busy lifting retted jute from rivers, canals, ditches and marshes, stripping the golden fibre and drying it in the sun. According to the district Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), deshi, tossa, mesta and kenaf jute are grown in the district.
Jute was grown on 3,735 hectares in the 2021-22 fiscal year, 3,973 hectares in 2022-23, 4,656 hectares in 2023-24 and 4,295 hectares in 2024-25. The target for 2025-26 has been set at 4,295 hectares.
Families at work by the roadside
On the ground, farmers were busy stripping fibre from the jute, with women in their families helping them. In the Nabagram area of Sadar upazila, jute has been left to ret in a canal beside the road. Farmers lift it from there and sit by the roadside to strip the fibre.
Matin Sheikh, a jute farmer in Nabagram, said: "I cut the jute in the field, carried it here on my head and put it to ret in the roadside canal. Now it has retted, so I have to strip the fibre. Then I can dry it well in the sun and take it home. If it retts too long the colour will be spoiled, so the fibre has to be stripped quickly."
Hanif Howlader, a jute farmer in the same area, said: "The jute we are taking now is called bachhna jute. We call the small jute plants in the field bachhna jute. We will cut the big jute in a few more days. Getting jute home is hard work. Skilled workers can't be found. Jute farming comes with all sorts of trouble."
Mannan, a jute farmer from Kamta in Dhankora union of Saturia upazila, said: "We cut the jute in the field and ret it in the Gazikhali river. This year I grew jute on three bighas. My cost was Tk 16,000 a bigha. Good workers to handle this jute can't be found. People in other districts can't handle jute the way we do."
Good prices this year, says DAE
Dr Rabiah Nur Ahmed, deputy director of the district DAE, told Jago News: "With favourable weather this year, the district's farmers have grown jute on about 4,200 bighas. As the jute has matured, fibre is being stripped, dried and marketed in full swing. Jute prices are good this year. I hope farmers will recover their production costs and see some profit. If farmers profit this year, cultivation will increase further next time."
Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.
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