The country’s salt farming is in a sorry state due to drastic fall in salt price over the last one year. The farmers, who are cultivating salt, are facing serious difficulties as they are failing to realise production cost. At least 45,000 farmers are cultivating salt in seven upazilas of Cox's Bazar district and Banskhali upazila of Chattogram. A total of 64,000 acres of land were brought under salt cultivation, sources said.
“There is no alternative and the government’s intervention is a must to protect salt farmers,” a salt farmer told this correspondent at village Kotakhali under Chakaria Upazila of Cox’s Bazar district. Anisur Rahman, a salt farmer of Chokoria upazila in Cox’s Bazar is cultivating salt over 20 bighas of land. But due to the law cost of salt, he is worried over recovering the production cost of this year.
Anisur is not the only one. All salt farmer of the area are facing the same problem. Three month ago, 40kg salt were being sold at Tk 280 which are now selling at Tk 150. Salt farmers have sought government intervention for getting the fair price of salt. They have also demanded formation of a ‘Salt Board’ in Cox’s Bazar to bring salt farmers under one umbrella.
Sources said the government has targeted production of 16 lakhs tones of salt for this year while the production has already gone up 18 lakhs tonnes. Besides, top salt manufacturing companies have stopped procuring salt from the farmers. “ACI salt Limited, Molla Salt, Modhumoti and other top companies have stopped procuring salt from the root levels,” Anisur told this correspondent. Farmer of the areas are not selling salt at a proper price due to a fall in salt price, he added.
However, he said “I have stored 4,000 maund. I have kept this salt at the salt field, he said, adding the government should take necessary steps for increasing the price of salt immediately. In Chokoria upazila, salt farmers are cultivating at 60-65 per cent lands. The sale of salt has already stopped from the field level as top companies are not procuring. So, tonnes of salt remain unsold.
Business Director of ACI Salt Limited, Md Kamrul Hasan, said “we collect six lakhs tonnes for our companies per day. But due to ban order of the High Court, we have stopped procuring salt from the retail level. If the situation is normal, we can start procuring salt from them.” Sources in Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation said there would be a need for 16, 65, 000 tonnes of salt ti meet the consumer and industrial requirements. But the salt production target this year is 18 lakh.
Since the middle of last November, around four lakh salt producers and farmers of Chokoria, Pekua, Kutubdia, Moheshkhali and Teknaf along with those in Cox’s Bazar Sadar were busy producing salt. BSCIC Deputy General Manager Dildar Ahmed Chowdhury said farmers of the area are producing salt from December to May-end normally. Till now, 18 lakh tonnes salt have been produced and this may go up.
Another farmer of Kotakhali of Chokoria Md Faruq said 250 maund salt is produced in 39 decimal land. Tk 45,000 has been spent for it but the cost is not recovered as top companies are not procuring salt from us. “The government should think over the matter so that we can sell salt at fare price,” he said.
Dildar Ahmed Chowdhury said if favourable weather prevails in the next two weeks, the target of salt production may be fulfilled. ‘
Salt production in three successive fiscal years since 2014-2015, has missed the target. In 2014-15, 1.28 million tonnes of salt were produced against the target of 1.8 million tones, in FY 2015-2016, 1.62 million tonnes of salt were produced against the target of 1.8 million tonnes and in FY 2016-2017, 1.66 million tonnes of salt were prfoduced against the target of 1.8 million tonnes, BSCIC sources said.
