Farmers to get loans to buy machinery

The government is taking initiatives to provide loans to farmers to buy agricultural machinery, Agriculture Minister Mohammad Abdur Razzaque said yesterday.

The minister said various agricultural equipment, including combine harvesters and reapers, are being given to farmers with 50-60 per cent subsidy in different regions.

"But even after giving subsidy, a farmer has to pay Tk 10-15 lakh to buy a combine harvester. In many cases, the farmer cannot buy the machine with this amount of money. The same is true of other agricultural machinery," he said.

Therefore, initiatives are being taken to provide loans from various banks on easy terms so that farmers can buy agricultural implements, he said while addressing a virtual meeting with the concerned stakeholders to expedite agricultural mechanisation from the conference room of the ministry.

"Our objective is to make agricultural machinery locally in phases. At present, most of the equipment has to be imported from abroad. We want to reduce it. In addition, we are emphasising on local manufacturing of spare parts and repair factories to increase employment at the local level," he said.

The minister called upon the manufacturers and importers of agricultural instruments to come forward in this regard.

At the meeting, the manufacturers and importers of agricultural machinery demanded bank loans for them. They also urged the government to provide loans to farmers and distribute agricultural instruments to small village entrepreneurs to expedite the mechanisation of agriculture.

The minister further said the present government under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has taken and implemented various initiatives to modernise and make agriculture profitable through mechanisation.

"The Tk 3,020 crore agricultural mechanisation project is a unique example of this. There will be a new revolution in agriculture in the country," he added.