Clotted urea for farmers
Fertilizer dealers in Gaibandha refrained from receiving delivery of clotted urea from the district buffer stock after farmers stopped purchasing the low quality fertilizer due to its adverse affect on crops.
Protesting supply of clotted urea, Bangladesh Fertilizer Association, Gaibandha unit, held a press conference at Gaibandha Press Club yesterday where Sudev Kumar Chowdhury, general secretary of the association, read out a written note.
Speaking on the occasion, Sudev said despite repeated appeals to the higher authority to stop supplying clotted urea as farmers are unwilling to purchase and use it in their croplands, the authorities concerned are still supplying the low quality fertilizer, he said.
However, the authorities concerned said the fertilizer might have clotted due to adverse weather but its quality still remained as before and the farmers need not to be worried about this, Sudev said.
Affected farmers said the clotted urea is often being supplied to them after crushing it in machines, which almost turned into dust rather than granules.
While spraying the fertilizer in the paddy fields the urea dust on the plant's leaves causes the leaves to turn yellowish and dry up soon, farmers alleged.
On the other hand, if large sized urea granules drop near the plant it dried up due to overdose, farmers complained.
In September this year, the buffer stock was nearly 3,000 tonnes at the district warehouse after dealers refused to draw the clotted urea.
Later, Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) Director Haiul Kaiyum during a meeting requested the dealers to receive delivery of urea this time and assured them that they would not supply spoiled fertilizer anymore, Sudev said.
“As farmers are unwilling to receive the clotted fertilizer, dealers are facing a huge loss. We are in a dilemma as we could neither return the clotted urea to BCIC nor sell it to the farmers,” Sudev added.
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