Labour crisis worries agri sector: Agriculture minister
The country's agriculture sector is currently suffering from a crisis of available labour, Agriculture Minister Dr Abdur Razzak informed the Parliament on Monday.
However, modern equipment is being provided to the farmers to overcome the situation, he added while responding to a question from Jatiya Party (JaPa) MP Mujibul Haque Chunnu during today's (4 April) session.
The question and answer session was presided over by the Speaker of the House Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury.
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"The ongoing labour shortage – especially during crop seasons – has reached its peak. To overcome this crisis, the government is implementing a mega project for the modernisation and mechanisation of the agriculture sector.
"Under this initiative, modern agricultural machinery are being distributed among farmers across the country with 50%-70% development assistance."
The minister also informed the Parliament that around 51,300 modern and updated agricultural equipment would be distributed in five years under this initiative.
The government has given a subsidy of Tk7,420.55 crore in FY2020-21 to reduce the prices of fertilisers, the agriculture minister furthered.
