Farmers in Faridpur, widely known as the country’s jute capital, are busy cultivating jute across vast tracts of land this season, raising hopes for a strong harvest and improved rural earnings from the ‘golden fibre’.
According to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), around 87,000 hectares of land have been brought under jute cultivation in the district this year. With favourable weather and timely rainfall, jute fields across the region are showing healthy growth, and farmers are actively engaged in field management.
Officials said nearly 90 percent of farming households in the district are directly or indirectly involved in jute cultivation. Overall crop conditions are reported to be satisfactory, with relatively low incidence of pests and diseases, raising expectations of a bumper yield.
However, farmers say rising input costs at the beginning of the season—driven by higher prices of fuel, fertilisers, quality seeds and increased labour wages—have added pressure on production.
M M Santu, a jute farmer from Sadar upazila, said the cost of cultivation has increased significantly this year. “It costs around Tk 22,000 to 25,000 to cultivate one bigha of jute. If we get a fair price, we can make some profit,” he said.
Another farmer said the crop condition is good but adequate water for retting and fair market prices will be crucial to make cultivation worthwhile.
Across the district, farmers are currently engaged in weeding, irrigation and other field maintenance activities, while also hoping for sufficient water availability during the retting process after harvest.
Shahaduzzaman, deputy director of the DAE in Faridpur, said the crop outlook is promising due to favourable weather. “We are providing round-the-clock technical support and advice to farmers,” he said, adding that field monitoring is ongoing to ensure better yield and fibre quality.
Advocate Manik Majumder, leader of the Faridpur Krishak Samity, said farmers’ profitability will depend largely on market prices. He cautioned that without fair pricing in line with rising production costs, many growers may struggle to secure expected returns.
Despite challenges, farmers remain optimistic that favourable weather and fair prices will help jute continue contributing to the rural economy.
