Lalmonirhat has been swamped with tobacco cultivation this year, after farmers of the district were encouraged by attractive offers from tobacco companies.
At least nine tobacco companies have been working to encourage farmers to cultivate tobacco on their lands. Tobacco companies have been offering interest free loans to encourage local farmers to cultivate tobacco instead of paddy.
Sazzadur Rahman, a farmer at Baninagar village of Kaliganj upazila, said he had cultivated tobacco on six bighas of land for the first time, after getting an interest free loan from a tobacco company. “I also got tobacco seed and fertiliser from the company,” he said, adding that the company also guaranteed to buy tobacco from him at a set price.
Mofazul Islam, another farmer from the same village, said: “I got a shirt, a lungi from a tobacco company’s representatives, and my son got money to buy books for class.”
Naser Ali, a farmer in Awliarhat village of Patgram upazila, said: “Representatives of the tobacco companies have provided cash advances to farmers preparing to cultivate tobacco on their lands.”
Seeking anonymity, many representatives of different tobacco companies said they helped provide seeds and fertiliser to tobacco growers so as to motivate them to continue to grow tobacco.
This year around 23,000 registered farmers grew tobacco in their lands, whereas the number was 13,000 in 2013 and only 8,000 in 2012. Sources said many unregistered farmers also grow tobacco on their lands.
The Department of Agriculture Extension officials in Lalmonirhat said tobacco was cultivated on around 25,000 hectares land in 2013, a figure expected to double this year.
Hamidur Rahman, agriculture officer at Aditmari upazila, expressed concerns that tobacco cultivation was increasing at an alarming rate, threatening paddy cultivation in the region. He added adding tobacco cultivation would decrease if companies stoped providing attractive offers to the farmers.