Officials at the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) said they have set a target to bring some 9,530 hectars of land under winter vegetable cultivation this time with a production target of 1,57,245 metric tonnes.

During a recent visit to rural areas, the UNB correspondent found that the vegetable growers in Sadar, Shibganj, Gomostapur and Nachole upazilas are busy cultivating brinjal, radish, spinach, red-spinach, cabbage, cauliflower in their lands.

The vegetable growers of the upazilas said cultivating winter vegetable is more profitable than cultivating paddy at this time of the year.

They urged the government to lower the prices of fertilizers and pesticides to reduce the production cost.

Mobarak Hossain, a vegetable grower of Takahara in Nachole upazila, said he cultivated cabbage, tomato and cauliflower as the market value of winter vegetables is higher than other vegetables.

Mobarak’s wife Jahanara said labourer cost is Tk 300 per head, and she works in the vegetable field of her husband to save the money.

Mobarak Ali, another farmer of Shahapur area in the upazila, said, “We’ve cultivated radish, spinach, red-spinach, cabbage, cauliflower, brinjal and tomatoes in our fields but the prices of pesticides and fertilizers are high while the wage of labourers has also gone up. If the prices of fertilizers and pesticides had been lower than we would have been benefited more.”

Manjurul Huda, DAE deputy director in Chapainawabganj, said the farmers of the district are showing more interest in cultivating winter vegetables in their lands as it has turned out to be more profitable than cultivating other crops.

The DAE is providing the farmers with necessary training and suggestions and discouraging them to use excessive pesticides. He hopes that the vegetable cultivation will exceed the target set by the DAE.