‘Cotton cultivation key to reducing yarn imports’

Cotton cultivation must be expanded to reduce dependence on imported yarn, Additional Deputy Commissioner (Education and ICT) Saiful Islam Kamal said while distributing agricultural inputs worth Tk 24 lakh among cotton farmers in Sherpur on Wednesday.

The distribution programme was held at the conference room of the Sherpur Deputy Commissioner’s Office. It was organised by the Cotton Development Board’s Mymensingh Region and chaired by its Chief Cotton Development Officer, Dr Khaleda Yasmin.

The agricultural inputs, including seeds, fertilisers, pesticides and other farming materials, were distributed among 300 small and marginal cotton farmers under a government incentive programme aimed at promoting cotton cultivation and increasing domestic cotton production.

Additional Deputy Commissioner (Education and ICT) Saiful Islam Kamal said the readymade garment (RMG) industry is one of Bangladesh’s leading industrial sectors and a major source of foreign exchange earnings.

However, he noted that yarn, one of the industry’s principal raw materials, is largely imported.

“To reduce import dependence, we must expand cotton cultivation and make it a popular crop. If cultivated properly, cotton can be more profitable than many other crops,” he said, urging farmers to make effective use of the government-provided incentives.

Md Israil Hossain said each of the 300 farmers, each owning one bigha of land, received agricultural inputs worth Tk 8,000, including cotton seeds, fertilisers, pesticides and other essential farming materials.

Among others, Cotton Development Officer Md Israil Hossain, Sub-Assistant Agriculture Officer Md Aminul Islam, poet Rafique Majid, and cotton farmers spoke at the programme.