Cultivate chilli and ensure marketing: Speakers

GAIBANDHA, Mar 29 (BSS): The speakers at a function stressed the need to cultivate more chilli at Char areas and ensuring its proper marketing to help the cultivators to get economic benefit. The speakers said chili is being produced at the char areas of the district every year through hard labour but the growers are not getting fair prices against their product. They made this observation at a workshop on chili production at Char areas and its marketing facilities jointly organised by Gaibandha Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) and SKS Foundation at Gaibandha Chamber Bhaban recently in cooperation with Oxfam-GB. Deputy Director of Department of Agriculture Extension AH Bazlur Rashid attended the function as the chief guest. They said for not having proper preserving system in the chars the cultivators are compelled to sell their product at a nominal price just after harvesting. Besides, lack of transporting system in the Char areas and marketing facilities are also responsible for depriving the growers of fair prices, they added. The speakers underscored the need for ensuring the smooth supply of good seed, fertilisers, insecticides and other agri inputs including loan facilities to the chili cultivators to inspire them to grow the variety in large scale at the Char areas. They also emphasised on familiarising the chili cultivation with the latest agro technologies through imparting them need base training and setting up demonstration plots by the agri officials to boost production of the variety in Char areas. With president of GCCI Shahjada Anwarul Quadir in the chair, the function was also addressed, among others, by senior Vice-President of the chamber Maksudar Rahman Sahan and farmer Joyen Uddin. More than 50 chili cultivators coming from different Char areas of Saghata and Fulchhari Upazila, officials of different seed companies and NGO representatives participated in the workshop.