Watermelon on 80 decimal on salt island Kutubdia: Tk 2.1 lakh cost, over Tk 4.5 lakh sold

On Kutubdia island in Cox's Bazar, amid the rush of salt production, 17 farmers in Ali Akbar Deil union are taking the risk of growing watermelon on 14 hectares. One of them is a 45-year-old woman. Her husband used to sharecrop land for rice, but salinity and irrigation problems left no profit. She learned the technique of watermelon from agriculture department staff and sowed seed five years ago. This year she planted 80 decimal and spent Tk 2.1 lakh. By the time of the Prothom Alo report she had sold Tk 4.5 lakh of watermelon, with about Tk 30,000 more still on the vines, so the profit after costs comes to about Tk 2 lakh. On 70 percent of the land the melons weighed 2 to 4 kg and sold for Tk 300 to 600 each; early in the season one 17 kg melon sold for Tk 1,700. Her husband sells to wholesalers. With the income she bought goats and paid an advance on a little land. A neighbouring farmer with two kani has received Tk 1.6 lakh so far, because higher salinity in his land killed some plants. There is also the risk that when the sea is rough in the monsoon, tidal water enters through the broken embankment and floods the crops.