BSS, Rangpur :
Farmers at a public hearing yesterday demanded for adopting more time-befitting internal wheat procurement process to ensure complete transparency and ensure fair price of their produced crop.
Thakurgaon Office of RDRS Bangladesh, a reputed NGO, organised the public hearing on ‘Internal Wheat Procurement Programme’ at Debipur Union Federation office premises under Sadar upazila in Thakurgaon district.
The event was arranged under the five-year term ‘Improving Food Security Governance in South and Southeast Asia through Strengthened Participation of Organisations of Marginalised Farmers’ Regional Project’ to ensure fair wheat price to the farmers. The regional project is being implemented in Bangladesh, Nepal, India and Myanmar to improve livelihood of 10.20 lakh marginalised households, including ethnic communities, with financial assistance of the European Union and Dan Church Aid.
A total of 250 farmers, including 130 males and 120 females, of the area participated in the public hearing with Chairman of Debipur Union Federation Habibur Rahman in the chair.
Sadar Upazila Agriculture Officer Anisur Rahman attended the occasion as the chief guest while Chairman of local Debipur union parishad Abdus Sultan Alam addressed as the special guest. Project Manager of Regional Food Security Governance Project of RDRS Bangladesh for Thakurgaon Mahfuz Alam narrated objectives of the public hearing moderated by its Agriculture Officer Md. Mahfuzar Rahman.
The farmers narrated various shortcomings in the prevailing process of the internal wheat procurement programme and its implementation and suggested for ensuring timely procurement of wheat directly from the farmers in a hassle-free manner.
In his speech, the chief guest said necessary steps would be taken to make the internal wheat procurement programme a complete success with adequate transparency through ensuring its benefits to the real farmers of the area in future.
