Statesman News Service
MALDA, 7 DEC: No it is not the dealay in monsoon or pests that is threatening paddy cultivation in parts of Malda, but it is pineapples that have become a favourite with the farmers in the area.
Failing to earn profits out of paddy cultivation in the past few years, some farmers have taken up pineapple cultivation at Bamongola block in the Barind belt, which is traditionally a paddy growing area. Pineapple cultivation has given growers good returns and now others are planning to follow suit.
Unaware of the development earlier, the horticulture department is now planning to help farmers whichever way it can. According to the district horticulture development officer Mr Goutam Roy, they were informed of the development recently.
“Many farmers are interested in cultivating pineapple in Malda district, which is actually a good news. We would visit the sites soon,” he said.
According to him, farmers are growing pineapple on land earlier used for paddy cultivation. “We must encourage the farmers to cultivate pineapple and provide them technical and financial assistance from the national horticulture mission,” Mr Roy added.
The agriculture development officer (technical) in Malda Mr Soumendra Nath Das said they were aware of the farmers switching over to growing pineapple instead of paddy in the Bamongola area.
“They collected pineapple seeds from farmers in Jalpaiguri district and also learnt the method of cultivation from them,” Mr Das said.
Besides pineapple many farmers in the Gazole block, another paddy growing area in the Barind belt, have converted their paddy fields into mango orchards. Gazole block now plays a vital role in producing quality mango after having adopted modern methods of cultivation.
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