Withdraw ban on import of one-day chicks

The Financial Express reported in its 24 June issue that hatchery owners had been charging intolerable high prices for chicks that made poultry farms non-profitable. We have been observing for last couple of years that a handful of hatcheries have been selling chicks at Tk 70.00 a piece though the price should not be more than Tk 20.00. In the recent past when the government stated that import of chicks might be allowed, the hatchery owners called a press conference and alleged that the Indian chicks would bring bird flue and destroy thousands of poultry firms in the country.
In fact, the hatchery owners are jeopardizing the poultry firms. They got the government to impose a ban on import of one-day chicks. The democratically elected AL government should not continue the policy of ban on chick import that causes the people to buy an egg for Tk 5.50 to Tk 7.00 and a live bird at Tk 140.00 to Tk 145.00 per Kg. The government should withdrew all sorts of restrictions on one-day chicken import. When the price of chick will come down to Tk 20.00 a piece the restriction on import could be considered. The interest of only a handful of rich hatchery owners should not be protected at the cost of thousands of SME poultry firm owners and general public.
Md. Ashraf Hosain
8/A, Ramna, Dhaka-1000.
E-mail : mah120cb@yahoo.com