Govt urged to give tax holiday facility to organic industry
FE Report | Tuesday, 17 June 2008
Fertiliser producers Monday urged the government for making special budget allocation for better protection of soil health and creating a fund to support establishment of new organic fertiliser factories in the country.
Members of Organic Fertiliser Manufacturers Unit (OFMU) of Bangladesh Fertiliser Association (BFA) made the appeal at a press conference in the city Monday.
They said quantity of organic substance in soil in most areas of Bangladesh is below standard, which is posing a threat to agriculture productivity.
"There should be presence of at least 5.0 per cent organic substance in an ideal land, but it is below 1.5 per cent in most areas in Bangladesh," M Omar Faruq, conveyer of OFMU of BFA, said.
He said the country produces around 26,500 tonnes of organic fertiliser commercially. It needs to use around 8.6 million tonnes of the type of fertiliser annually.
"We urge the government to immediately approve the policy, adopted earlier, and facilitate establishment of new factories for production of chemical-organic fertiliser and its marketing," Faruk added.
He said use of organic chemical fertiliser in land will help reduce the consumption of urea fertiliser by at least 30 per cent.
Members of the OFMU also urged the government to ask its dealers to sell organic fertliser to ensure its use in land, which will improve soil condition and raise productivity.
They also urged the government to provide tax holiday facility to organic and chemical-organic industry and allow it to import capital machinery and laboratory equipment duty-free.
OFMU also sought government's subsidy on supply of raw materials and 25 per cent rebate in electricity bills aiming to ensure easy availability of the fertiliser at farmers' level.
Members of Organic Fertiliser Manufacturers Unit (OFMU) of Bangladesh Fertiliser Association (BFA) made the appeal at a press conference in the city Monday.
They said quantity of organic substance in soil in most areas of Bangladesh is below standard, which is posing a threat to agriculture productivity.
"There should be presence of at least 5.0 per cent organic substance in an ideal land, but it is below 1.5 per cent in most areas in Bangladesh," M Omar Faruq, conveyer of OFMU of BFA, said.
He said the country produces around 26,500 tonnes of organic fertiliser commercially. It needs to use around 8.6 million tonnes of the type of fertiliser annually.
"We urge the government to immediately approve the policy, adopted earlier, and facilitate establishment of new factories for production of chemical-organic fertiliser and its marketing," Faruk added.
He said use of organic chemical fertiliser in land will help reduce the consumption of urea fertiliser by at least 30 per cent.
Members of the OFMU also urged the government to ask its dealers to sell organic fertliser to ensure its use in land, which will improve soil condition and raise productivity.
They also urged the government to provide tax holiday facility to organic and chemical-organic industry and allow it to import capital machinery and laboratory equipment duty-free.
OFMU also sought government's subsidy on supply of raw materials and 25 per cent rebate in electricity bills aiming to ensure easy availability of the fertiliser at farmers' level.