Around 70,000 acres of land have remained uncultivated at eight upazilas in Khagrachhari this year due to a shortage of irrigation facilities.
According to District Agriculture Extension (DAE) Office, although Khagrachhari is covered with hills, mountains and rocky soil, there are over 1 lakh acres of cultivable land.
Most of the land is located on the bank of three rivers Chengi, Feni and Mainee.
Of the total cultivable land, only 25,000 acres of land were bought under boro cultivation, 5,000 acres under vegetables and 5,000 acres of land under winter crops cultivation this year.
Farmer Sauprue Marma, 45, of Apar Perachhara under sadar upazila in the district said over 1,000 acres of land at his village had remained uncultivated because of water crisis.
“We cultivate all the land during rainy season and sit idle rest of the year as there are no irrigation facilities,” he said.
Rupananda Chakma, 42, a farmer of Dullatali village under Lakshmichhari upazila in the district, said more than 1,500 acres of land at his village remain uncultivated during dry season due to acute water crisis.
“We cannot set up tube-wells to meet our daily requirement of water, let alone cultivating Boro, he said, adding that no initiatives were taken from the government’s end to solve the water crisis so that farmers could bring their land under cultivation of different types of crops.
Environmental Activist Abu Daud Muhammad said farmers in Khagrachhari are usually depended on three rivers that are filling up with siltation.
“Rivers remain waterless as these are filled with soil and have not been dredged for even a single time,” he said.
Sub-Assistant Agriculture Officer of district DAE Ranjit Chakrobory said there was no deep tube-well in the district for irrigation facilities.
The three rivers which farmers mostly depend on are going to die because of siltation, random hill cutting and deforestation.
“There are 525 diesel operated small pumps in the district used by hill farmers during boro cultivation, but these remain useless as there is no water in the river,” he added.
Deputy Director of Khagrachhari DAE Abdul Matin said most of the land remained fallow for lack of irrigation facilities. But the production chart of the district can be changed if we are able to bring the uncultivable land under boro cultivation through setting up some barrage, embankment and creek barrages.
Replying to another query, Abdul Matin said Khagrachhari Hill District Council had set up over 100 creek barrages aiming to change boro cultivation, but most of the time targets are not fulfilled because of corruption of constructors and shortage of DAE officials monitoring.