Natore rearers losing interest in buffalo farming

NATORE, Oct 06: People of Lalpur upazila in the district are losing their interest in commercial buffalo farming.
Upazila livestock office source said buffalo rearing was popular among the poor across the Padma basin.
Some local non-government organisations (NGOs) were also helped them in different ways.
That time buffalo farming was profitable. Farmers of 120 farms had made handsome profit from it.
But now a good number of rearers are giving up buffalo farming for shortage of fodder and high cost of medicine. Besides, low market price is one of the main reasons for decreasing popularity of buffalo cultivation.
"I have 20 buffaloes at my farm. Buffalo rearing requires more cost now a days. I don't make any profit from my farm. So I have decided to sale it", said Abu Juwel Hossain of Tilokpur village under Lalpur upazila.
In a recent visit at Kazipara, Veborpara, Beelmaria, Badhupara, Chadpur, Mahdoppur, and Tilokpur area of the upazila the correspondent found hundreds of farmers are seen passing worried time as they lost some 30 mature buffaloes for unidentified disease.
To raise a buffalo, farmers spend over Tk 70,000 to Tk 80,000 but selling at Tk 65,000 to Tk 68,000, said farmer Selim Hossain of Kazipara village.
A good number of buffalo farm owners in the upazila said they do not even get adequate loan facilities in this regard.
Upazila livestock officer Mustafizar Rahman said the livestock office in the area has been suffering from acute shortage of manpower.
"We cannot provide adequate services to the farmers according to their necessity", he added.
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