Promotion of soil, fertiliser management stressed

RAJSHAHI, June 11 (BSS): Speakers at a discussion in Rajshahi have underscored the need for collective efforts of all authorities concerned for substantial and sustainable promotion of soil and fertiliser management technology for protecting the soil productivity from further degradation.
They mentioned that fertiliser is a key input in crop production and its appropriate use can return optimal yields and higher profits to the farmer. Conversely, inappropriate use leads not only to lower productivity but also the deterioration of soil health. The supply and availability of quality fertiliser on the farmer's doorstep, coupled with its balanced usage and application, is a critical issue in sustaining crop productivity, they added.
The observations came at a daylong seminar styled "Aspects of Soil and Fertiliser Management Technology" held at a community centre Wednesday.  Fertiliser Management Division of Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation (BADC) organised the seminar focusing on role of fertiliser to crop production and existing fertiliser distribution system.
During his keynote presentation, Nur Muhammad Mondal, Joint Director (Fertiliser) of BADC, said soil fertility in the region has gradually been decreasing with intensified crop production, high-yielding crop varieties and an over-dependency on chemical inputs.
During the last couple of decades, foodgrain production as considerably increased due to substantial intensification of cropping, introduction of high yielding varieties and expansion of irrigated area and use of chemical fertilisers.
However, this has also led to widespread soil fertility depletion caused by fertiliser nutrient imbalance and serious nutrient gap between plant use and fertiliser application and mining out scarce native soil nutrients to support increases in yields of food crops.