To meet food scarcity due to the coronavirus pandemic, Agriculture Minister Dr M Abdur Razzaque on Wednesday asked the concerned officials to undertake big funded projects in the agriculture sector, reports BSS.
“To face any possible food crisis due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, big funded projects needed to be introduced in the farm sector”, he said in an online meeting while reviewing the progress of the project implementing under the Annual Development Programme (ADP) from his official residence.
The minister, however, told the meeting that only the agriculture can help to survive the people, adding that “people at least can stay safe and remain alive if there is enough food in their houses despite the dilapidated economic condition due to the pandemic.”
Agriculture Secretary M Nasiruzzaman moderated the function.
According to the directives made by the Prime Minister, he said the agriculture ministry is working relentlessly and taking and implementing time-befitting decision on the outset of the corona outbreak.
Resulting in, significant production has been achieved in the agriculture sector during the disaster, he added.
To ensure food security during the covid-19 situation, the government has taken a project with an amount of Taka 174.98 crore on fruit and vegetable cultivation to ensure maximum use of the uncultivable land in light with the prime minister’s instruction.
Under the revised ADP, the agriculture ministry is implementing a total of 78 projects with an accumulated expenditure of Taka 1763.94 crore.
Meanwhile, the Agriculture Minister has inaugurated online agricultural commodity marketing site ‘hortexbazarbd.com’ with a view to ensure proper marketing and fair price of the agricultural commodities. The hortex foundation has developed this e-commerce site through the ‘software shop limited (SSL).
Any consumer can place their purchase order through the site and price could be paid by using debitcredit cardbikashnagad or rocket. The foundation is delivering different vegetables including mango, jack fruit, litchi, guava, pineapple and aromatic rice to the consumers through its delivery van.