Farmers have become hostage to fertilizer sellers in Jibannagar Upazila of Chuadanga. BCIC, BADC and retail fertilizer dealers are selling fertilizers at high prices without paying attention to the price fixed by the government. Farmers have to constantly pay more money without getting fertilizer at a fair price. Farmers claim that there is no remedy even after complaining to the Upazila Agriculture Office.
On Sunday (September 4) at 4 o'clock in the afternoon, Raipur market of Jibannagar Upazila was seen on the ground, retail fertilizer trader Aynal Haque is selling urea fertilizer at Tk 1,100 per bag at Tk 1,250 and potash fertilizer at Tk 750 at Tk 1,500 per bag. Apart from this, retail fertilizer traders of the same market, Kalam Hossain, Farooq Hossain, Imran Hossain and Taleb Hossain are selling urea worth Tk 1100 per bag at Tk 1350 and potash fertilizer at Tk 1500 per bag worth Tk 750. After visiting Minajpur Bazar and Garkandi Bazar, it was found that most of the fertilizer traders are not selling the fertilizer at the price set by the government. When a stranger goes to a fertilizer shop to buy urea and potash fertilizers, he is told that there is no fertilizer. Fertilizers are being sold at a higher price to known farmers.
Meanwhile, BCIC (Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation) approved Hawk Traders tagged for Andulbaria Union of Jibannagar Upazila was found closed at 6 pm. At that time, the farmers standing in front of the shop who came to buy fertilizer said that most of the time the shop is closed. Farmers complain that hawk traders sell most of the fertilizers to retailers at higher prices during night hours.
To ensure that farmers can apply fertilizer on time, the government's Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) and Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) market fertilizers to farmers by appointing dealers across the country. As per government rules, one dealer is appointed in each union. Dealerships have been given to those dealers on the condition that they conduct their business in their respective unions. But most of the fertilizer traders have godowns within the municipality.
After investigation, it is known that there are multiple union fertilizer dealers on both sides of Dattanagar road in Jibannagar upazila city. But there is a rule to sell fertilizers to marginal farmers by keeping storehouses in the dealers' union.
Farmers claim that dealers are forcing farmers to buy fertilizers at higher prices by creating artificial shortage of fertilizers through syndicates to earn extra money.
There is public labor in the area, there is no supervision of agriculture department in fertilizer business in Jibannagar. And because there is no supervision, traders are running their business as they wish. Although there is a rule to sell fertilizers to farmers through cash memos by fertilizer dealers, dealers are not doing it due to high prices.
Apart from this, dealers of BADC and BCIC as well as retail fertilizer traders are selling fertilizers at higher prices than the government fixed prices, but agriculture officials say that they do not have any complaint or sufficient evidence on behalf of the farmers. They ask for store sales receipts or certificates as proof.
There are complaints that if any of the buyers ask for the receipt from the fertilizer dealers, they are being given the receipt mentioning the price fixed by the government. If someone protests, they are not selling fertilizer to him. They say that the allocated fertilizer is over, now what is available has to be bought from outside at extra cost.
The farmers of Jibannagar Upazila are frustrated as they are not able to apply urea and potash fertilizers to their land during the current Amon season, which will disrupt the desired crop production.
Farmers complain that they are being turned away by showing artificial shortage of fertilizers. When they go to buy fertilizer in the store, they are told that there is no fertilizer. Many shopkeepers say that they are buying fertilizer at a high price, so they have to sell it at a high price. But if farmers want to buy fertilizer at a fixed price, it is said that there is a shortage of fertilizer.
Farmers also complained that when they went to buy fertilizers with cash memos at government rates from fertilizer dealers, they informed that potash and urea fertilizers were not available. And if you give it at a higher price, you can get enough fertilizer. And they are selling at higher prices to common farmers without memo. If you ask for cash memo, no dealer is giving it.
Farmer Sufi Alam of Paschim Garkandi village of Raipur Union said, I don't know if there is any fertilizer dealer in our area. We are forced to buy fertilizer at a higher price from city storehouses.
Farmer Golam Rahman of Anantpur village of Andulbaria union said the same thing. He said, we are buying urea at Tk 27 and potash at Tk 30 per kg.
According to Upazila Agriculture Office sources, Aman has been planted on 6 thousand 20 hectares of land in Jibannagar Upazila during the current Aman season. In contrast, TSP fertilizer 200 metric tons, potash fertilizer 225 metric tons, DAP 511 metric tons and urea fertilizer 920 metric tons have been allocated in September. According to the Agriculture Office, there should be no shortage of fertilizers.
Jibannagar Upazila Agriculture Officer Sharmin Akhtar said that if there is a complaint of selling fertilizer at high price, the license of that fertilizer dealer will be cancelled. Retail fertilizer dealers including BCIC and BADC approved fertilizer dealers of the Upazila have already been warned for selling fertilizers at the fixed price of the government.
Jibannagar Upazila Nirbahi Officer Ariful Islam said, farmers are the life of the country. If the fertilizer traders hold the farmers hostage and sell them at higher prices, strict action will be taken against the shopkeeper. Regular monitoring of fertilizer market will be done from now. Jail-fine will be imposed in the mobile courts against those who sell fertilizers at high prices. The agriculture sector cannot be hampered in any way.