The harvesting of Blackgram (Maskolai) is going on full swing in all the seven upazilas of the district expecting a bumper production during the current season, the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) sources said here today.

The DAE sources said a total of 7045 hectares of land was brought under black gram cultivation with a production target of 7, 547 metric tons of pulse, but the target of production might be exceeded due to the favourable climatic situation.
 
 The DAE officials and farmers said the vast char areas of Harirampur upazila, Shibalaya upazila and Daulatpur upazila were remaining uncultivated for its sandy soil. But a few farmers of the area started to cultivate black gram first on a small scale.

 Now the black gram is one of the important cash crops and food items of the people of the areas, the sources said.

Selim Mollah, 50, one of the black gram cultivators of village Paruria under Daulatpur upazila said he has cultivated black-gram on three bighas of land this year and started to harvest.

 He said black gram is one of the tasty and delicious food items of the char people, adding that ‘we are happy to get the reasonable prices of our product’.

 Shiraj Sheikh, 43 another farmers of village Gangadhardi under Lesraganj union of Harirampur upazila said, ‘black-gram cultivation changed our fortune as most of the sandy land have already brought under black gram cultivation of the areas’, adding that the sandy lands are becoming alluvial day by day for black gram cultivation. He said the green black gram is a very good fodder for our cattle heads, adding that waste of the black gram is also very nutritious fodder for domestic animals.
 
Abu Mohammad Enayet Ullah, Deputy Director (DD) of the DAE, said the land of Manikganj specially three upazilas of the district is suitable for black gram cultivation and the farmers of the areas cultivate this pulse product as one of the cash crops and food stuff also.

 About 40 percent of the black gram has already been harvested and the newly harvested black gram pulse is appearing at the markets of the district and it has a great demand and the farmers are getting lucrative prices of their products.