Princh Mondal Olif, Bagerhat District Correspondent:
A total of 26,338 farmers in Bagerhat have been identified for receiving agriculture cards in the first phase of a government initiative aimed at providing financial and agricultural support to farmers.
The programme is part of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s (BNP) election commitments, which include the introduction of Family Cards and Farmer Cards. Under the five-year programme, a total of 244,328 farmers in Bagerhat are expected to receive agriculture cards in phases.
According to the district agriculture office, the first phase has a target of 31,374 farmers. Information on 26,338 farmers has already been collected, while data collection for the remaining farmers is still underway.
Additional Deputy Director of the Department of Agricultural Extension in Bagerhat, Apurba Lal Sarker, told BSS that information on 26,338 farmers had already been collected against the first-phase target. The remaining data would be collected within the stipulated timeframe.
The first-block survey has already been completed. Farmers from different unions of Bagerhat Sadar, Fakirhat, Mollahat, Rampal, Kachua, Morelganj, Sharankhola, Mongla and Chitalmari upazilas have been brought under the programme.
An official seven-member committee headed by the respective Upazila Nirbahi Officer conducted the verification and selection process. The final list of 26,338 eligible farmers was prepared and sent to the concerned banks by August 31.
The selected farmers will receive an annual government grant of Tk 2,500 through Janata Bank, Sonali Bank and Bangladesh Krishi Bank. According to the agriculture department, the agriculture card will also be treated as a debit card.
Apart from direct financial assistance, cardholders will have access to irrigation facilities, agricultural training, machinery, advice on pest and disease management, agricultural marketing facilities, crop insurance training, subsidies and incentives, agricultural loans and farming inputs.
Deputy Director of the Department of Agricultural Extension in Bagerhat, Agriculturist Hazi Md. Motahar Hossain, told BSS that the cards would be distributed to farmers through banks. He said the card would function as a debit card and enable farmers to receive Tk 2,500 in government assistance annually.
He further said Prime Minister Tarique Rahman is scheduled to inaugurate the agriculture card distribution programme on September 17. Bagerhat’s coastal Rampal upazila is expected to be connected to the programme online on the inauguration day.
Officials said agriculture in coastal Bagerhat remains vulnerable to salinity, waterlogging, cyclones and tidal surges. Despite these challenges, farmers in the district continue to produce rice, vegetables, fruits and other agricultural products. The agriculture card programme is expected to provide not only direct financial assistance but also better access to modern technology, irrigation, agricultural inputs, training and market linkages.
News Published By:
Bangladesh Diary
Photo: .
