The yards and homes of farmers are filled with the fragrant smell of newly reaped rice during the ongoing Aman harvest season.
From morning till evening, farmers are busy cutting and threshing rice and storing the fresh grain in their homes while the traditional Nabanna festival brings happiness to their life.
With timely rainfall and no major natural calamities, this year’s Aman yield has been satisfactory, leaving the farmers delighted.
According to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), 70 to 80 per cent of the district’s paddy fields have already been harvested and the remaining will be reaped within a few days.
With timely rainfall and no natural calamities, transplanted Aman sees a significantly better yield this year and the production is expected to exceed the target, said Dr Bimal Kumar Pramanik, deputy director of the DAE in Cox’s Bazar.
The DAE reports that in the 2025–26 fiscal year, the target for transplanted Aman cultivation across the district’s nine upazilas was 78,730 hectares. Of this, Chakaria accounted for 19,550 hectares of hybrid and Ufshi (high yielding) varieties; Pekua 8,435; Ramu 9,450; Sadar 4,445; Eidgaon 4,145; Ukhiya 9,690; Teknaf 10,935; Maheshkhali 8,100; and Kutubdia 3,980 hectares.
Sources say that 8 to 10 rice varieties are cultivated across different parts of the district, with BRRI Dhan-28, 29, 49, 89, 103, and 75 being particularly popular. These varieties typically yield 25–28 maunds (40 kg) per bigha, which is why farmers prefer them.
A visit to the fields reveals a mesmerising sight—golden, ripe rice swaying in the cool breeze, stretching as far as the eye can see. Women are working alongside men.
Farmers said timely rainfall this year reduced their irrigation expenses, and they now hope to make a good profit from selling the harvest.
Mohammad Rahim Uddin, a farmer from Chouphal Dondi, who cultivated BRRI Dhan-28 on two bighas of land expects to produce 20–25 maunds of rice this year.
Abdul Jalil, a farmer from Ulubania in Teknaf, said, “By the grace of Allah, the rice has grown very well this year. We got rain and sunshine at the right time, and so, the yield is good. If the market remains favourable, I hope to make some profit.”
Another farmer from the same area, Nurul Hakim, said, “The Aman season has gone really well this year. No diseases affected the crops. Labour costs were a bit higher, but looking at the yield, it seems we’ll make a profit overall. Now we just need a good market price.”
Badsha, a farm labourer working in Ramu’s Chakmarkul area, said they are paid Tk800 each daily along with two meals.
Meanwhile, for the 2025–26 fiscal year, the government has set procurement prices for paddy and rice—paddy at Tk34 per kilogram, parboiled rice at Tk50, and atap rice at Tk49. The DAE expects Cox’s Bazar district alone to produce 167,471 metric tons of paddy this season.
According to agricultural statistics, Aman rice has been cultivated on 5.7 million hectares across the country this season, with a production target of 17.8 million metric tons.
