Once poverty-hit Barodaha now a vegetable village

Once a poverty-stricken village, Barodaha village in Botlagari union under Saidpur upazila is now known as vegetable village as vegetable farming has brought tremendous improvement in the socio-economic condition of the villagers.

People of Barodaha village were poor as the land was infertile and they used to cultivate only paddy, but they did not get enough yield to earn their livelihoods. As a result, many villagers usually went to distant places for doing farm work or plying rickshaw.

Botlagari union Sub-Assistant Agriculture Officer (SAAO) Mominul Islam said the history behind the turning of the area into a flourishing village from its previous status is interesting.

“Ten years ago, marginal farmer Osman Gani, 40, out of curiosity, cultivated high-yield tomato on his 10 decimals of land and got 50 maunds of the vegetable. He sold the produce for Tk 20,000, which inspired him very much,” he said.

“Next year, Gani cultivated tomato on one acre of land that he took on lease and got unexpected profit. It was a new concept for the villagers,” Mominul added.

“Seeing his success, villagers were inspired to start vegetable farming with vigour. They got support from the agriculture department and turned Barodaha into a vegetable village within a few years,” the SAAO added.

On a visit to the village, six kilometres from the upazila headquarters, this correspondent saw vegetable fields one after another. Vegetables were being grown in homesteads and even on roofs of houses. He saw farmers weeding tomato fields, watering beans or harvesting cauliflower.

This correspondent saw houses built with new corrugated iron sheets glittering in the sunlight and having sanitary latrine, tube-well and electricity.

Farmer Ehsanul Islam, 50, said he cultivated beans on three bighas of land, cauliflower on four  bighas and bottle gourd on two bighas, and expects to get handsome profit.

Babul Hossain, 38 said he cultivated 20,000 cauliflowers on five bighas and got Tk 2 lakh by selling each cauliflower for Tk 10, on average, one week ago, while his expenditure was only Tk 1 lakh.

Md Zikrul Huque, 50, who cultivated tomato on one acre, said production cost was around Tk 50,000 and income was around Tk 1.25 lakh, which is many times higher than paddy.

Former chairman of Botlagari Union Parishad Saidur Rahman said buyers from Dhaka and other big cities come to Barodaha village with two or three trucks daily to buy vegetables from the farmers' fields.

Saidpur Upazila Agriculture Officer Homayera Mondol said the soil of Barodaha village is suitable for vegetable cultivation, which is more profitable than any other crop. They advise farmers on modern methods of farming and natural pest control, she added.