SANGSAD BHABAN, Jan 22, 2020 (BSS) – Prime Minister and Leader of the House
Sheikh Hasina today reiterated her government’s commitment to ensuring fair
price of crops and other agricultural products in the interest of the farmers.
“The farmers-friendly Awami League government has taken various initiatives to
ensure fair price of crops produced by the farmers and it will continue these
programmes in the future,” she told the House while replying to a starred
question placed by treasury bench member Md Shahiduzzaman Sarkar
(Naogaon-2).
To ensure the fair price of food grains, the prime minister said, the Food Planning
and Monitoring Committee of the government fixes the prices of food grains (rice,
paddy and wheat) with 10-15 percent profit on production cost, considering the
interest of farmers.
To this end, she said, the government in 2019 decided to procure wheat per kg at
Tk 28, while Boro and Aman paddy per kg at Tk 26, boiled rice per kg at Tk 36 and
non-boiled rice per at Tk 35.
The Leader of the House said the government set a target of procuring 4.11 lakh
metric tons of rice and about 4 lakh MT of paddy during the last Boro season,
while it collected around 15.5 lakh metric tonnes of food grains, including 4 lakh
MT of paddy and about 10 lakh MT of boiled rice against the target.
Sheikh Hasina said the present government has taken an initiative, for the first
time, to procure Aman paddy directly from the farmers.
“We’ve planned to procure 6,26,991 MT of Aman paddy directly from peasants
fixing the price of paddy at Tk 1,040 per maund and 3,84,702 tonnes of rice from
the millers,” she said.
The premier said food grains are being collected every year from internal sources
aiming to ensure the fair price of crops the farmers produce.
She said the government has taken an initiative to set up 200 silos across the
country with the capacity of 5,000 MT each to store paddy directly collected from
the farmers.
“Another initiative has been taken to build seven modern rice mills with drying
facility of paddy,” she added.
Sheikh Hasina said the government has planned to set up storages in different
parts of the country aiming to preserve and process vegetables.
A “Farmers’ Market” has already been established at ‘Sech Bhaban’ beside the
city’s Manik Mia Avenue to ensure fair price of agri products , she said, adding
the market remains open on Friday and Saturday.
Besides, the Leader of the House said, the government is now setting up 30 more
farmers’ markets in different parts of the country.
A total 18 assemble centres were set up in the country’s northwestern and
southern regions for proper marketing of crops and other agricultural products,
she added.