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Editorial

Arable land still decreases

Government efforts need boost


Bangladeshpost
Published : 15 Dec 2019 07:19 PM | Updated : 05 Sep 2020 04:30 AM

The country is highly dependent on its agriculture. Aside from the fact that a large amount of food for the country comes from this sector, there is also a large amount of food being exported to other countries as well. However, recently the amount of arable land has been decreasing at the rate of two percent per year around the country. This is a threat to the train of development which is slowly gaining speed in all sectors.

A report published in this daily projects that the amount of arable land suitable for farming is decreasing slowly. Experts opine that among the reasons of drastic decrease in agriculture land the effect of river erosion is somewhere on the top. Each year river banks are eroding away causing vast expanses of arable land to disappear under water. A study report published in 2018 projected that Bangladesh is going to lose around 2,270 hectares of land in that year alone, no follow-up on that report was later made public but it is anyone’s guess that the numbers have not been off. 


The government should include a proper

 plan to counter the river erosion and

 family planning in its five year

 programmes with clear visions


However, the vast area of farm land which was lost was also included in this number. So, it is evident that the amount of arable land is consistently decreasing. It is to be kept in mind that without arable land there can be no agriculture and no growing of crops. The government needs to intervene here to reduce this erosion and keep the arable lands safe. 

Another reason where the government is falling short is family planning. The population has been a major concern for the country for decades and it is still quite a puzzling issue that needs solving. Proper family planning is the key to solving this age old problem. With more population there is need of more places to occupy for people to live and this is the prime reason which is causing agriculture land to decrease. 

The government should include a proper plan to counter the river erosion and family planning in its five year programmes with clear visions.