Minister assures businesses of releasing cash incentive on time

FE Report | Published: April 20, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

Industries Minister Amir Hossain Amu has assured fertiliser businesses of releasing the cash incentive against their fertiliser import on time.
He also asserted that the dealers got their allotted fertiliser at the very beginning of the month so that they could distribute it in due time.
The minister was speaking as the chief guest at the 20th annual general meeting (AGM) of the Bangladesh Fertiliser Association (BFA), held at a city party centre Saturday.
He said some 5,300 dealers and their 45,000 retailers are greatly contributing to the country's agriculture and increasing productivity.
"The fertiliser traders are contributing greatly to the move to attain self-sufficiency in food in the country," he said.
Mr Amu also said the government is providing a large amount of subsidy on fertiliser to keep the growth of production sound.
"We are now providing subsidy at Tk 24 for per kg of Urea, Tk 18 for per kg of Triple Super Phosphate (TSP) and Diammonium Phosphate (DAP) and Tk 25 for Murate of Potash (MoP) fertiliser," he said.
He also said the government is working hard to increase production of local fertiliser factories to minimise import cost.
However, the BFA placed a 9-point demand to the government for the betterment of the fertiliser supply chain that includes re-fixing of income tax on total sale which is now up to 10 per cent.
BFA demanded to suspend the decision of giving new licences for dealing in fertiliser at the union level where already dealers exist.
The association also proposed for delivering 'thin urea granule' to south, south-west and central regions and 'fat urea granule' to north and north-western regions according to their demands.
Chairman of BFA and lawmaker Kamrul Ashraf Khan Poton presided over the AGM where Shawkat Chowdhury MP, agriculture secretary Dr S M Najmul Islam, industries secretary Mainuddin Abdullah, vice-president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) Helal Uddin, among others, spoke.
Dr Najmul Islam said irrigation, seed and fertiliser are the basic inputs for production.
He said chemical fertiliser has no alternative to producing higher volume of crop; so keeping the supply chain of the fertiliser smooth is very important for the betterment of agriculture.
First vice-chairman of BFA Abdus Salam Khan coordinated the programme.