Lockdown leaves scars on vegetable growers

Vegetable farmers in Rangpur and Dinajpur incurred huge losses amid the lockdown when they were finding it difficult to send crops to Dhaka and other parts of the country as truck operators were demanding high fares on different grounds.

Farmers in the two northwestern districts were deprived of fair prices for their produce because they were forced to let the crops rot on many occasions or sell those off at low rates.

"Vegetables were rotting in the croplands as most of us refrained from harvesting large quantities on time as traders were reluctant to buy our crops for a lack of trucks," said Fazlu Mia, a farmer of Ranipukur village under Mithapukur upazila of Rangpur.

But now that the lockdown is being lifted for a few days, the farmers expect that their sufferings will ease to some extent as transportation cost will come down and demand will rise.

As a whole, Rangpur division has a crop intensity of 222 per cent, which is higher than the national average of 198 per cent in fiscal 2019-20, showed data from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).

"We farmers were selling our vegetables at a low price as demand declined for the strict lockdown," Mia added.

This is the second year that farmers in the country's northwest and other districts, that are distant from major cities such as Dhaka, were suffering from a lack of buyers and transportation.

Last year, after the government enforced a countrywide shutdown in the April-May period, many growers incurred losses for similar reasons.

Jafar Ali, a farmer of Jaigir village, said the transportation cost had almost doubled, raising prices at the consumer level.

According to officials of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) in Rangpur, different vegetables are being produced on 9,480 hectares of land in the district this year.

The total area being cultivated was 385 hectares more than that of the previous year.

On the other hand, at least 13,500 hectares of Dinajpur, Thakurgaon and Panchagarh have been brought under vegetable cultivation this summer.

Farmers produced 3.8 lakh tonnes of vegetables in Rangpur division this year, according to provisional data from the DAE.

On a national scale, farmers produced 20 lakh tonnes of summer vegetables, or 44 per cent of the total vegetable production, in fiscal 2019-20, as per the BBS data.

Agricultural officials said farmers prefer to produce vegetables on their own land as it was more profitable thanks to its cost effectiveness and being hassle-free in the northwest division.

However, the Covid-19 pandemic has become a curse for the farmers as vegetable sales decreased significantly for various reasons, including the disruptions to transportation.

Area-based sales at local markets of vegetables also declined.

During a recent visit to different places, including Jaigir, Mithapukur, Buriganj and Palichora areas, this correspondent found that only a few trucks were being loaded with vegetables.

"I used to hire at least five to six trucks every day for sending vegetables to other districts, including Dhaka and Chattogram, every season but now I am hiring only a single truck for the higher charges amidst the lockdown," said Rafiqul Islam of Mithapukur.

Alleging that the truckers were charging up to 80 per cent higher, he added that the demand from traders has also dropped.

Usually, large trucks, mini-trucks and pickup vans are preferred for transporting vegetables to other districts from Rangpur.

"But due to the high transmission rate of Covid-19, most truckers are afraid of getting infected," Islam said.

Another farmer, Golam Rabbani, said wholesalers were not taking adequate amounts of vegetables from the growers as they were facing troubles in transporting those to other districts amidst the strict lockdown.

"We are suffering losses," he said, mentioning that he sold spiny gourds to wholesalers at Tk 15 per kilogramme but it was being retailed at Tk 35 per kilogramme.

This was happening due to the high transportation costs, according to wholesaler Rafiqul Islam.

Shahidul Islam Manik, general secretary of the Truck, Tank-lorry and Covered Van Workers Union in Rangpur district, told The Daily Star that truck drivers and helpers were unwilling to ply the roads in fear of getting infected.

But even though vehicles transporting vegetable were out of the purview of the strict lockdown, they faced many problems on the highways, he said.

"A lack of accommodations and unavailability of food on the roads were also key issues," Manik said.

Obaidur Rahman Mondal, deputy director of the agricultural department in Rangpur, acknowledged that farmers were being deprived of fair prices amidst the current lockdown.

Md Humayun Kabir, a farmer of Kamorpara village under Thakurgaon sadar upazila, said he suffered heavy losses this season due to the lockdown as wholesalers were refusing to take vegetables due to a lack of trucks.

But since the lockdown has been lifted for a while, the situation may take a turn for the better, he said, adding: "The season is at its end, which is why the price of vegetables will start rising again."

Ziaul Islam, a wholesale vegetable trader of Kamorpara village, told The Daily Star that he usually required at least four trucks to send vegetables to Sylhet, Chattogram, Dhaka, Khulna and Barisal.

"It is now quite difficult to secure a single truck in such a lockdown situation. I am paying almost double the truck rent charged before," Islam had said.

The truckers were charging high rates since they do not get hired for the return trips, he added.

Md Masud Mia of Boalmari village under Panchagarh sadar upazila said vegetables produced in Panchagarh were usually sent to various districts.

But wholesalers were not buying as much as they used to, forcing most farmers in the district to suffer losses, Mia added.

Shah Alam, deputy director of the DAE office in Dinajpur, said vegetable harvest in the area was going at a slow pace because of the lack of transportation amidst the lockdown.

"Farmers would get better prices for their vegetables if the transportation problem did not arise," he added.