MANIKGANJ, Bangladesh – The fuel crunch from the Iran war is rippling through Bangladesh’s countryside, leaving tens of thousands of farmers struggling to secure diesel for irrigation at a critical stage of the paddy season.

Rice is a staple food in the South Asian nation of 175 million people and late March is a crucial window for sowing the main summer crop. But diesel shortages, rationed sales and long queues at fuel stations are disrupting irrigation, heightening concerns about plant growth, lower yields and increased losses for farmers.

Bangladesh relies on imports for 80 per cent of its refined fuel needs, with much of that coming from the Middle East. Price volatility and supply disruptions as a result of the war have squeezed supplies, but while the government has introduced measures to conserve energy and find new sources of fuel, farmers say they are struggling.

In Manikganj, near the capital Dhaka, Mr Mohammad Yusuf walks across his land, pointing to newly sown seedlings struggling to survive in the dry soil.

“What will we eat if we cannot grow rice?” the 35-year-old said. “Paddy is our only currency. It runs our family. This fuel crisis is putting us in deep trouble.”

By day, Mr Yusuf queues for diesel. By night, he works his land.

Service stations frequently hang banners at the pumps reading ‘No Fuel’.

“We stand in line at the pumps all day, then come to the fields in the dark to irrigate, plough, fertilise and sow,” he said.

“No one has been able to work in the daytime in recent weeks – everyone is stuck in queues. Sometimes we wait for hours, sometimes whole days, and still return empty-handed.”

Even when fuel is available, it is t...