Nat’l agri instt to be set up

Agriculture Minister MK Anwar said this at the annual general meeting of the Alumni Association of Sher-e-Bangla Agriculture University yesterday.

Education Minister Dr M Osman Farruk and Vice-Chancellor of the university Dr AM Farruk also addressed the function presided over by President of the association Md Mahbubuzaman.

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MK Anwar said four prime areas, including reducing knowledge gap, ensuring quality seeds of crops, strengthening research and setting up more agro-processing units, have been identified.

He said 60 training centres at upazilas are being set up. All the upazilas will have the centres in phases to provide training for some 1.25 crore families of the farmers in the country, he added.

The minister said the government is planning to set up a 'seed corporation' to raise the seed production. It also took a biotechnology research project, he added.

MK Anwar said the government has been providing agro-produce exporters with 30 percent cash incentives besides organising capital with the least interest rate. As a result, some 1,000 agro-processing units have been set up, he said.

The education minister said increase of GDP from agriculture is vital for economic development and poverty alleviation as 85 percent of the rural poor are engaged in farming.

He said agriculture is also acting as a forward and backward linkage to rural manufacturing industry.