Agriculture Minister Dr Abdur Razzaque said the government has approved a project with an outlay of Taka 3,020crore for farm mechanization aiming to bring a drastic change in the agriculture sector.
“Around 52,000 farm machineries will be distributed among the farmers through the agriculture ministry project on the ‘farm mechanization’ at a cost of Taka 3,020 crore”, the minister said this on Thursday while exchanging views with the representatives of Bangladesh Machine Tools Factory Limited (BMTF) at the ministry conference room here.
Of these machineries are Combine Harvester, Reaper, Rice Transplanter, Seeder, Power Thresher, Maize Sheller, Dryer, Power Sprayer and Potato Digger.
During the meeting, the minister also discussed with the BMTF’s representatives on how these farm machineries could be manufactured and assembled locally in line with the instruction given by the Prime Minister.
Regarding the government importance on local manufacturing of the farm machines, the agriculture minister said, “The farm mechanization is crucial to make agriculture profitable for the growers. The farming cost would decline through the mechanization.”
Calling the BMTF to extend their help for manufacturing the farm machines, Dr Razzaque said if these machines could be produced locally then the farmers will get the farm machines in cheaper price and it would also help save our import cost.
Moderated by the Agriculture Secretary M Nasiruzzaman, the meeting was also attended, among others, by Additional Secretary M Hasanuzzaman Kallol, Additional Secretary Kamlaranjan Das, BMTF’s Deputy Managing Director Brigadier General M Iqbal Akhter Mia, BMTF Director Brigadier General M Ashraful Islam and senior ministry officials and BFTF’s senior engineers.
“Our agriculture will be modern and mechanized like the agriculture of the developed world, said the minister, adding that the main goal of the government is to make the agriculture most modern, profitable and commercialized through sustainable development of the sector”.
