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Government to give the farmers price incentives |
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August 1, 2000
Dhaka (UNB) - As bumper crops knocked down market rates, the government decided to buy an additional one lakh tons of rice aiming to give the farmers price incentives. With this the total government purchase of rice from the growers in the current IRRI-Boro season will rise to 5 lakh metric tons. "If necessary yet another one lakh tons of rice will be bought later on," said a government announcement yesterday(monday). This decision has been taken to ensure fair price for the produce of the farmers and building government stock for meeting the need during any crisis period. Earlier, the government has planned to purchase 4 lakh mts of IRRI-Boro rice in the current season, but now decided to enhance the procurement target in view of a market glut. Under the procurement drive, a total of 3.70 lakh mt rice has been purchased from local markets till (Sunday) July 30 and preserved in different government godowns, said the official release. This year total cereal production stood at 2 crore 50 lakh metric tons, it said and observed the country attained food autarky. "This is for the first time that the country achieved self-sufficiency in food," the government announcement said. It attributed the success to a plan adopted by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government for boosting farm production through improved agricultural management. Under this plan, agricultural inputs and tools were made easy available to the farmers and fair price of their produce was ensured. Also the farmers affected by natural calamity were helped out under agricultural rehabilitation programme, said the release.
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