Big plan taken to keep Boro on track

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The government will pursue an aggressive plan for higher Boro yield this season as Aman production is down by 18 lakh metric tons from the last fiscal year’s.

The agriculture ministry has already formed a seven-member taskforce and assigned 30 of its high officials to ensure smooth supply of agricultural inputs to the farmers cultivating Boro.

The taskforce, led by a joint secretary, will work towards timely and adequate supply of fertiliser, diesel, seeds and agricultural implements for the farmers, agriculture ministry sources said.

Any problem on the ground will be brought to the attention of higher authorities for quick resolution, they added.

The government will also look to cut through bureaucratic red tape to speed up the supply to farmers.

Each of the 30 officials will oversee field-level operations in around two districts. They will work in consultation with the deputy commissioners and report back to the taskforce.

The steps come after low rice production and a rise in international market price have raised the spectre of food crisis in the coming months.

Agriculture ministry data show 1.55 crore metric tons of Boro was produced last fiscal year (FY07) while this year’s (FY08) target has been set at 1.75 crore metric tons, revised up from 1.60 crore.

Aman production target for FY08 was 1.30 crore tonnes.

According to preliminary data of the ministry, only 1.1 crore tonnes have been produced compared to 1.28 crore tonnes in FY07. However, sources say the figure could be much lower.

The ministry had estimated that Aman production losses to back-to-back floods and Cyclone Sidr would be around 14 lakh tonnes while the preliminary figures show the shortfall to be around 20 lakh tonnes.

There is however always a discrepancy between figures given by the agriculture ministry and the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).

According to BBS data, Aus production in FY07 was 16 lakh tonnes, compared to 21 lakh tonnes shown by the agriculture ministry. BBS put the Aman production at 1.08 crore tonnes while the ministry put it at 1.28 crore tonnes.

Our district correspondents report that the year-long fertiliser and diesel crises too have contributed to lower production in FY07.

Trading Corporation of Bangladesh yesterday said the price of rice has gone up by Tk 11-16 per kilogram from that in January last year. The rate of inflation exceeded 11 percent in November with food inflation in urban areas hovering around 16 percent.

Low- and fixed-income groups have been the ones bearing the brunt of the soaring prices.

Balance of payments has also been hit hard by a rise in imports.

Around $2 billion will have to be spent in the first six months of FY08 on import to meet the domestic food shortages that have taken the balance of payments from having a healthy surplus to a deficit last December.

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