Mismanagement in urea imports

Documents obtained by The Daily Star regarding fertiliser imported from Saudi Arabia have highlighted negligence on part of both the state-run organisation which imports the sacks and the company exporting them. The Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) has imported 3.15 lakh sacks of fertiliser, many of which have not turned out to be of less than the standard 50kgs.

It is simply wrong that fertiliser imported for the use of the farmers by a state run entity should end up being less than what we are paying for. We have reported that some operators at Mongla Port have found the fertiliser sacks to be weighing as little as 42 to 43 kg. This is more outrageous when we take into account that each tonne of fertiliser cost Tk. 39,000 and according to BCIC officials the organisation might incur a loss of as much as Tk. 3 crore.

BCIC sources have admitted that it is the farmers, who would suffer as they would get less fertiliser for their money. Seeing the discrepancies, many state-owned warehouses had even refused to store the sacks that weighed less, and sources have indicated to an attempt of a cover-up. Sending the fertiliser to dealers directly without storing them would only be enabling the problem instead of addressing it.

According to the BCIC chairman, the suppliers have been contacted, and we have been promised compensation. While we congratulate the courage of warehouse in-charges who stood up to the mismanagement, what is needed is an investigation into the matter to ensure accountability and transparency. In the end, it is the farmers we are putting at jeopardy, and that is not expected of a state-run organisation working for their benefit.