Make new varieties of crops available to farmers

Food Minister Dr Abdur Razzaque on Friday urged the agronomists and researchers to reach the new varieties of crops and agricultural technologies to the doorsteps of the farmers to boost crop production and thus meet the increased demand of food of the country’s growing population. “If the new crop varieties and technologies could be reached to the farmers’ level, the farm output will get a tremendous boost,” he told the inaugural session of a daylong conference at the city’s Barc Auditorium. Bangladesh Society of Agronomy (BSA) organised the conference, titled ‘Agronomic Research for Enhancing Sustainable Crop Production’.Executive director of Advance Chemical Industries (ACI) Dr FH Ansarey, BSA president Dr M Rafiqul Islam Mondal, its general secretary Dr Nur Ahmed Khondaker and vice president Dr MA Karim, among others, addressed the function.Speaking as the chief guest, Dr Razzaque said poverty is a big problem for the country and many problems will be resolved if poverty could be cut significantly. He said about 80 per cent of the country’s people live in villages and they are directly or indirectly involved in agriculture. “Poverty could be eradicated by developing the agriculture sector.”Highlighting the state of the country’s food security, the Food Minister said the government has taken a number of initiatives to bring down poverty rate to 15 per cent by 2021. “We’ve already attained food security apart from achieving the targets of MDGs,” he added.After assuming power, Dr Razzaque said, the government in its first cabinet meeting reduced the prices of all non-urea fertilisers to help the farmers increase their farm output.He said as the government has taken steps to mobilise resources at all levels, the rural economy is now in a batter shape compared to that of the last thousand years of the country’s history.“Now nobody goes to sleep without taking food…all children go to the school.”The Food Minister stressed the need for attracting all brilliant students and professionals in agriculture sector to develop the economy. “If the brilliants could not be brought into agriculture sector, it is quite impossible to develop this sector.”About the researchers and scientists’ demand for raising their retirement age, he said although the Prime Minister is very willing to do that it could not yet be done for various reasons.