Tobacco cultivation diminishing fertility of the soil in Lalmonirhat

Tobacco cultivation on vast agricultural land in Lalmonirhat district is diminishing fertility of the soil.

It also is causing serious health hazards including respiratory problems, skin disease and cancer to large number of womenand children who are involved with tobacco cultivation.

Although huge incentives and necessary input support from tobacco companies is encouraging farmers to cultivate tobacco on their lands, it is posing a threat to the natural biodiversity of the land. Huge profit margin comparing to other crops, adequate supply of necessary inputs, interest free loan and price fixation facilities by the tobacco companies have contributed to raising tobacco cultivation instead of other crops in the district.

Tobacco cultivation on vast agricultural land is diminishing fertility of the soil. It also is causing serious health hazards including respiratory problems, skin disease and cancer to large number of women and children who are involved with tobacco cultivation.

M Anwar Hossen, a farmer of Shibram village under Barobari union, told BSS that he had been cultivating tobacco for the last couple of years. He wanted to cultivate potato this year but higher prices of seed and pesticide enforced him to switch to tobacco cultivation.

In the district, he said, the farmers once involved with various crops cultivation including paddy, wheat, maize, mustard and potatoes. But now tobacco is being cultivated in most of the lands.

"We usually never get back our real cost by cultivating paddy, vegetables and other crops while labor cost also has been mounted significantly. So, we have switched into tobacco cultivation with the support from the tobacco company", said Shahidul Islam, another farmer of Panchgram Union. "Ultimately, good profit also has encouraged us to tobacco cultivation," he added.

The representative of the tobacco companies gives us necessary seed and cash support for cultivating tobacco on one acre of land, said a Tista area farmer Amzad Ali. Even the farmers are getting assurance to sell their products from their houses and that's why tobacco farming is raising in the region, he added.

Tobacco processing and consumption causes risk for oral cancer and also highly risk for brain stroke and heart attack, according to the health experts. Excessive fertilizer and pesticides use for tobacco cultivation are also spoiling soil fertility and it also harmful for bio-diversity and environment, they said.

"There is still no government instructions for stopping tobacco cultivation", said Agriculture Officer of Lalmonirhat Sadar Upazila Khandoker Sohail Ahmed. "But we are trying to develop awareness among the farmers considering the alarming consequence of the tobacco," he said.

Since the tobacco manufacturing companies are distributing seed, fertilizer and necessary credit to the farmers free of cost and that's why the farmers are being interested in tobacco farming, said Deputy Director of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), Lalmonirhat, Dr M Saikhul Arefin.
The tobacco has been cultivated on over 15,500 hectares of land in Lalmonirhat this year.