Lemon cultivation is keeping farms in business in Narsingdi. It is driving up living conditions and increasing exports. The people treasure the fruit for increasing their standing and treat it as a treasure.
“Lemons have brought good luck,” says orchardist Babul Chowdhury, who began growing lemons on a small patch of land around a decade ago. Nowadays the size of his plantation has expanded nearly 6 times thanks to the prosperity the crop has brought him.
“When I started to grow lemons, the local agriculture officer helped to ensure the crop was disease free and suitable for export,” he remembered. “Nowadays I've become one of the largest lemon growers in Bangladesh. It's really profitable.”
“We provide advice and pesticides for the farmers,” says deputy agriculture officer in Raipura upazila, Mohammad Muzibur Rahman. “We run demonstrations to ensure a good quality of lemon is produced, fit for export.”
Lemons are already being exported to 20 countries in Asia and Europe, with around 20,000 tonnes exported annually, which brings in about USD $30,000 in foreign earnings.
