Balanced fertiliser key to tackling fertiliser crisis: Speakers

Speakers in a discussion meeting said that balanced and soil test-based fertilization has been identified as a key strategy to address the ongoing fertiliser crisis while simultaneously preserving soil health.

Soil scientists and researchers made the observation at an awareness campaign on soil health protection and motivational meeting on balanced fertiliser use, organized by the Soil Resource Development Institute (SRDI) at its Chapainawabganj Regional Office on Friday. Addressing the event as chief guest, SRDI Director General Dr Samia Sultana stated that the agriculture sector has seen the most development. Seventy percent of Bangladesh’s population is engaged in agriculture.

She highlighted the current fuel crisis in the agricultural sector. She mentioned that the government provided a subsidy of Taka 27,000 crore for fertiliser in the last fiscal year. She discussed the use and importance of organic matter in soil, pH, and dolomitic lime. She emphasized the importance of a research center in this region. In the last fiscal year, Taka 40 crore was saved in potato cultivation in the Tanore region, mentioning the Upazila Guideline, use of DAP and TSP fertilisers, fertiliser testing, and poultry organic manure.

Dr Samia Sultana underscored the harmful effects of reduced use of organic matter, green manure and biofertilisers in agricultural practices.

These, she said, are among the key factors contributing to declining soil fertility. “Soil test-based and balanced fertilization is now indispensable for preserving soil properties conducive to healthy plant growth,” Dr Sultana added.

She called on field-level agriculture officers to rigorously implement the Upazila Land and Soil Resource Use Guideline and to actively engage grassroots farmers in adopting balanced fertiliser use as part of sustainable agricultural practices.

In his keynote address, Chief Scientific Officer at SRDI Laboratory Aminul Islam elaborated on the technical aspects of balanced fertilization.

Speakers said that balanced fertilization can increase crop yields by at least 20 percent, a figure consistently demonstrated in field trials across the country over the past few years.

Participants at the meeting included around 25 farmers and others concerned.