BJA Chairman Warns of Movement if Raw Jute Export Ban Not Lifted
Staff Correspondent :
Khandaker Alamgir Kabir, the newly elected Chairman of the Bangladesh Jute Association (BJA), has said that the ongoing ban on raw jute exports has placed jute traders and exporters in a severe crisis. Many are now burdened with heavy debts. “In the last two months, we haven’t been able to export a single bale of jute. Yet, we are having to pay wages to workers who have no work to do,” he said. He further stated that thousands of traders, as well as farmers, are suffering due to the export suspension. “We will soon meet with our advisors and senior officials at the ministry. If the decision to halt raw jute exports is not withdrawn within the next ten days, we will be compelled to take strong action,” he warned.
He made these remarks on Sunday afternoon during the 58th Annual General Meeting of the association, held at the BJA’s Narayanganj office. Earlier, outgoing Chairman Md. Farhad Ahmed Akand formally handed over responsibilities to the newly elected executive committee and extended his greetings. The new executive committee includes Chairman Khandaker Alamgir Kabir, Senior Vice Chairman S.M. Saiful Islam Piyas, Vice Chairman Md. Tarek Afzal, and executive members Md. Fahad Ahmed Akand, Shamim Ahmed, S.M. Moniruzzaman (Polash), Khairuzzaman, Md.Kutub Uddin, Sheikh Imam Hossain, S.M. Hafizur Rahman, Badrul Alam (USA), H.M. Prince Mahmud, Md. Tofazzal Hossain, Md. Iqbal Hossain Bhuiyan, Md. Noor Islam, Md. Alamgir Khan, Ranjan Kumar Das, and S.M. Saiful Islam. The meeting was attended by jute traders and exporters from Dhaka, Narayanganj, Khulna, and other regions of the country. The final audit report for the previous fiscal year was presented and unanimously
approved.
In addition, reports on the activities of the previous executive committee over the past two years were reviewed, new memberships for the Ordinary and Associate groups were approved, and an auditor was appointed with fixed remuneration to conduct the audit for the current fiscal year.