President urges farmers to form central body to protect interests

President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir today called upon farmers to form a central organization at the national level to ensure their overall development and protect interests, irrespective of party affiliation, opinion or path.

The President made the call as an eight-member delegation of the Bangladesh Farmers Association, led by its President Md Siddiqur Rahman Kul Moyez, paid a courtesy call on him at Bangabhaban this afternoon.

Other members of the association present during the meeting were Md Abdul Jalil, Md Hasan Ali, Mst Beli Begum, Md Abu Taleb Joaddar, Md Hafizur Rahman Mukul, Toffazzal Hossainand Shawkat Alam, President's press secretary Md Sarwar told BSS

The President said farmers are the real and finest people of the country.

"They are the warriors who build the country. To honour and inspire these farmers, an initiative will be taken to introduce the President's Agriculture Award for new innovations and outstanding contributions in the agriculture sector," he said.

He assured the farmers of all-out cooperation and advised them to communicate at the highest level, and called for turning the interests of farmers into a movement.

"Agriculture remains the most progressive sector of the country. Due to hard work of farmers, the development of new high-yielding varieties and agricultural technologies, and the proper use of technology, crop production has increased manifold" he said.

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He also added that farmers do not engage in corruption rather they contribute to the progress of society and the state.

The President called for developing effective marketing system so that agricultural products and crops can easily reach consumers and farmers receive the fair price.

"The incumbent government has introduced a new scheme for ensuring fair prices for agricultural products and the development of farmers, and Tk3,000 crore has already been allocated," he observed.

"The government has also waived agricultural loans, including interest, of up to Tk10,000 for farmers," he said, assuring that initiatives would be taken to reduce interest rates on loans taken from NGOs.

At the time, he highlighted various initiatives taken by the government for the development of agriculture and farmers including arranging agricultural loans at low interest.

Mirza Fakhrul Islam called upon the members of the association to come forward to export these agricultural and processed products using modern technology, saying "There is huge demand and immense potential abroad for fruits and agricultural products produced in the country."

He also called for taking initiatives to establish agro-processing industries and modern cold storages and using modern solar panels on farms.

During the meeting, the farmers' delegation placed various demands before the President for the development and welfare of farmers.

The head of the Association informed the President about an initiative to hold a reception in Ishwardi for farmers aged over 70 in recognition of their contributions to the agriculture sector and to organise a fair for displaying and commercializing modern agricultural products.

He requested the President to attend the event as the chief guest. The President's secretaries were present during the meeting.