Rural Heritage June/July 2026

Motorized motor-tillers, from Indian or Chinese production, are hired by farmers on the Chars from the mainland.

Tractors were first imported into Bangladesh in the late 1950s for use on government farms. Japanese power tillers were first imported in 1965 for experimental purposes. By 1970, over 2,000 tractors and nearly 4,000 power tillers were imported with grant or tied aid. Most of these machines were used on government farms or kept in farm machinery stations for hire services at subsidized prices to individual farmers (Jabbar, 1985). In 1977/78, 504 tractors and 1,098 tillers were collected for experimentation, but no more than 125 tractors and 200 tillers were used in any one of the planned four experimental years. Lack of spare parts and trained manpower, use of adulterated fuel, and rough handling made most machines unusable after few months. The experiment was completely abandoned, and the remaining operable machines were sold to the private sector (Jabbar, 1985). From the middle of the 1980s on, the use of motor tillers and two-wheel tractors,usually with a capacity of 8 kW (10.73 hp), increased considerably in Bangladesh. Because of these implements, it is now possible to prepare the land required for multiple cropping in time, taking into consideration the meteorological periods described in the first part of this article.

Climate-smart and humus-building farming practices, such as reduced, strip and zero tillage or intercropping are not practiced on the Chars. The main reason for this is that silt deposits from the Himalayas give the soil unique fertility, and the recurring floods ensure a constant renewal of the rather dark soil cover. Furthermore, organic farming is viewed critically because of the high humidity and the fungal pressure on the crops. The other farm equipment for land preparation on the Chars includes all sorts of hand tools, like spades. These are the most ancient agricultural implements abundantly available in Bangladesh and traditionally made by village craftsmen. Used for seedbed preparation, weeding, cutting and removing soil, making dikes, and other household activities, these still pure wooden tools are called “kodal” in the native language Bangla. Today, Bangladesh’s growing population could not be fed without the application of mechanical power in agriculture. Furthermore, there is an acute shortage of animal power for tillage operations. As mentioned above. the average body weight and power output of the indigenous cattle breed in Bangladesh is very low compared to many other countries of the world.

June/July 2026

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