PM orders accurate list of rain-hit haor farmers for assistance

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has directed the authorities concerned to take swift measures to assist farmers affected by heavy rainfall in the haor regions, including the preparation of an accurate and transparent list of the victims.

He issued the directive at a meeting held on Thursday afternoon at the Prime Minister’s Office in the Cabinet Division of Bangladesh Secretariat.

The meeting was convened to review ongoing initiatives for providing financial assistance to farmers affected in the haor areas.

The Prime Minister said that genuine affected farmers must be identified and a precise and transparent list should be prepared. Financial assistance to farmers will be provided for the next three months based on this list.

The meeting also decided to ensure prompt disbursement of financial support to the affected farmers. In addition, discussions were held on advancing the rice planting and harvesting seasons slightly to reduce the risk of weather-related losses.

On 29 April, addressing Parliament, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman had said that the government would try to provide three months of support to farmers in the haor region affected by heavy rainfall.

The meeting was attended by Disaster Management and Relief Minister Asadul Habib Dulu, Agriculture and Fisheries and Livestock Minister Aminur Rashid Yasin.

Lawmakers from haor regions were also present, including Deputy Speaker of Parliament Barrister Kaisar Kamal, State Minister for Jute and Textiles Shariful Alam, Dr Osman Faruq, Fazlur Rahman, Lutfozzaman Babar, Kamruzzaman Kamrul, Nurul Islam, Kalim Uddin Milon and Mohammad Koyser Ahmed.