Jasim Uddin Haroon
The government has started distributing fertiliser at Upazila level under an alternative mechanism to bring dynamism and transparency in marketing of the important agricultural input.
The Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) is distributing fertiliser at Upazila level dealers who are local inhabitants.
Earlier, the BCIC dealers, irrespective of their localities, could sell fertiliser to the farmers.
Sources at the BCIC said it has released 152,000 tonnes of urea for the month of July under the new arrangement.
They hinted that the corporation would appoint local people as dealers at union level also by the next couple of months.
Under the new system, around 800 existing BCIC dealers might lose their dealerships, the BCIC sources said.
The BCIC has around 4800 dealers across the country despite the fact that the country has around 5,400 unions.
The government made it a mandatory provision to appoint local people as fertiliser dealers. The move has been taken following reports of price manipulation by dealers who are not inhabitants of that particular locality.
A high-powered committee has also found that such dealers are also liable for artificial fertiliser crisis during the last Boro season.
When the fertiliser crisis worsened in February and March last, Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed gave a directive to the concerned ministries to form committees and investigate the mater.
As per directive, a high-powered committee headed by the Secretary of the Ministry of Industries was formed. It had a number of meetings with departments concerned and Bangladesh Fertiliser Association (BEA).
The committee after meetings with all stakeholders suggested that hiring of local dealerships would enhance the fertiliser marketing and bring transparency in the system.
Fertiliser being distributed at upazila level
FE Team | Published: July 04, 2007 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00
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