Rapid economic dev requires more privileges in agri sector

According to a recent study, nearly 69,000 hectares of agricultural land have been shrinking annually due to rapid industrialisation and unplanned urbanisation. If you move along premier highways of the country, you will see the sign of unplanned industrialisation and urbanisation on cultivable land. On the contrary, daily newspapers publish news that farmers destroy potatoes, tomatoes etc as they can not recover even the production cost. Reports in the newspapers say farmers are selling their vegetables at throw-way prices as they could not even fetch what they spent on growing these. Newspapers also publish photos of potato farmers demonstrating with their potatoes spread streets because of the price that falls short of the production cost.  These are the common picture every year as farmers are protesting for not getting logical and justified prices for their products. Because of poor road connectivity between production areas and markets, poor transportation facilities, lack of reliable price information and exploitation by intermediaries are depriving our farmers of being in a profession that can prove profitable. Even they are compelled to sell their products at prices that cannot meet even production costs. These make farmers frustrated and force them to leave farming.
Examples cited above can never help our economy to achieve the desired of economic growth rate as it hampers production in the agriculture sector. Obviously the agriculture sector provides a lifeline for our national economy. So, economic growth of the country mostly depends on growth in the agriculture sector. Moreover, economic emancipation of almost two-thirds of the people depends on agriculture. We have a large population in the country in comparison to the small size of areas. To produce food grains for its entire people the country needs to increase agricultural production. But unplanned industrialisation and urbanisation on the cultivable land, poor marketing system, improper and inadequate storage facilities for perishable agricultural items like fruits, vegetables etc, absence of agro-based industrialisation and intermediaries pocketing profit are creating hurdles to developing the lifeline of the national economy. On the contrary, farmers are compelled to cultivate tobacco, strawberry etc instead of growing major cereal crops only for earning more.  Therefore, the government needs to take necessary steps for the motivating the farmers to grow more major cereal crops like rice, wheat, pulses etc as well as oilseeds, vegetables, and fruits.  Because, the government needs to ensure food for the entire population from domestic sources as it will be costly for importing food grains from abroad. Moreover, almost 90 per cent people of the country are rice eaters. So, the government should encourage farmers providing logistic and financial support alongside bring all of the cultivable land under cultivation for increasing production of major cereal crops like rice, wheat and pulses. Besides ensuring this, the government should also take necessary steps for growing other agro based crops like vegetables, oilseeds, fishes etc to ensure availability of nutrition supplementary foods taken with rice or wheat. The government may consider the following steps to inspire farmers to grow more need-based crops:
l Ensure smooth road connectivity between production areas and markets through projects like KABIKHA, TR etc.
l Chain shop owners, wholesalers, TCB and other government agencies may be encouraged to buy the produce directly from farmers.
l Available and rational cost-effective transport facilities may be ensured in marketing the produce.
l The government may launch special goods train with air-conditioned bogies/wagons and other suitable facilities run between rural and urban agriculture markets.
l Union level agriculture information centres (UCIS) should be well equipped so that farmers may get price information and other information suitable for cultivation.
l Air-conditioned growth centre may be established at union level agriculture markets for temporary storage of the produce.
l Genuine farmers should be given hassle-free loans or monetary facilities by commercial and specialised banks, chain shop owners and agro-based industrialists at zero or marginal interest rates.
l Utmost heartfelt services should be ensured from officials of agriculture departments.
Moreover Bangladesh is a densely populated country. So development of the country mostly depends on active participation of country's huge labour forces in economic activities in both agriculture and industry. The industrial sector mainly depends on labour intensive garment factories. But it is a touchy sector as its expansion and smooth running mostly depends on GSP facilities, buyer countries' policies, domestic development friendly political environment, economic/business diplomacy of government and intense competition among other neighbouring countries. On the contrary Bangladesh isn't blessed with enough natural resources as raw materials for setting up technology dependent heavy industries. So considering huge manpower with hereditable agricultural knowledge and skills the government might utilise them in agro-based economic activities. Labour intensive agro-based industrialisation could be the authentic and rational way of utilising huge labour forces in economic activities that tends to develop growth in agriculture sector. It also ensures food security in the country with removal of nutritional deficiencies among people. Agro-based industrialisation requires more agricultural products as raw materials and knowledgeable and skilled labour forces as main input. Fortunately the country has fertile lands suitable for over production and skilled labour forces. So, the government should outline more on expediting agro-based industrialisation through encouraging domestic and foreign investors to set up industries using  particular agro-based products as raw materials in the areas of the country noted for growing that agricultural products  abundantly. The government may encourage investors to set up juice/jam/jelly/pulp factories in the areas where mango, litchis, orange, pineapple, jackfruit, watermelon etc grow enormously. Investors could easily invest on producing ready vegetable curry, ready fish curry and ready meat curry. Factories of chips and other crispy & tasty food items from potato, banana, pulses, corn/maize, rice and wheat might be established in the areas noted for growing such agro products abundantly. Investors may be inspired to set up factories of delicious food items from chicken, fish and vegetables like chicken nugget, chicken ball/roll, fish finger/ball/roll, French fry etc. It might be profitable for investors to establish factories of frozen chicken/beef/mutton/fish in packets for cooking. Modern hygienic dry fish factories may be set up in the coastal districts and haor districts (Sunamganj, Natore, Sylhet, Moulvibazar, Netrokona etc) noted for growing and catching fish enormously.
Agro-based industrialisation will create huge demands of agro products as raw materials that will definitely increase agricultural production. Eventually this will ensure food security in the country. On the contrary excess production after meeting domestic needs may boost export. Besides this, the country may earn foreign exchange by exporting products from agro-based industries. Moreover, agro-based industrialisation will enable the government to bring a huge number of people under employment. As a result economic activities will actively run in the interior parts of the country that will surely prevent people's exodus from villages to towns only for earning money. This will develop growth in transportation sector too. Thus growth in agriculture and agro-based industries sector will be enhanced significantly that will eventually boost country's overall economy. The country only needs a combined initiative taken by commerce, industry and agriculture ministries to chalk out a revolutionary plan for rapid agro-based industrialisation.
The writer is working for primary education in Bangladesh. E-mail:    auparbayazidkhan@gmail.com