A tissue culture laboratory is nearing completion at Balaghata in Bandarban, a development expected to transform hill agriculture through the production of disease-free and high-yielding seedlings.
According to relevant sources, the Tissue Culture Laboratory cum Horticulture Center—one of five such facilities under the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE)—is now in its final stage of construction.
Once operational, the facility will produce sterile and virus-free seedlings of various fruit and flower species locally, helping farmers increase yields by 25–30 per cent while reducing losses caused by diseases and pests. Farmers in the three hill districts, Cox’s Bazar and Chittagong are expected to benefit from the improved planting materials.
Officials said the main infrastructure of the laboratory, including the hardening chamber, nursery shed and training room under the ‘Establishment and Development of Tissue Culture Laboratory cum Horticulture Center’ project, has been completed. Interior finishing work and installation of modern equipment are now underway.
Local farmers have expressed optimism about the initiative. Thoayinu Aung Marma, a farmer from Balaghata, said many fruit trees in the hills die due to diseases, adding that affordable, disease-free seedlings would significantly improve productivity.
Another farmer, Tayyab Chowdhury of Bandarban, said the facility would play a key role in advancing agriculture in the hill districts, while Mathui Marma of Dolupara highlighted the potential for women to gain skills and income through seedling production training.
Project contractor Mozaffar Hossain said the project is being implemented under an 18-month performance agreement and is expected to be completed and handed over by December this year.
Deputy Director of Bandarban Horticulture Center Liton Debnath said about 90 percent of the work has been completed. He added that equipment procurement is underway and the lab is expected to become operational between August and September.
He further said the facility will open new horizons in hill agriculture by producing export-quality, disease-free seedlings through tissue culture techniques.
The horticulture farm was established in 1969 by the then EPADC and later brought under the Horticulture Development Board. Since 1991, it has operated as a horticulture center covering 12 acres, contributing significantly to agricultural development across seven upazilas of Bandarban.