Fertiliser supply comes under 24/7 monitoring
The Ministry of Agriculture has formed a Fertilizer Management Control Room to monitor fertiliser supply, stock, transportation, distribution and retail sales round the clock and respond quickly to problems arising at the field level.
The decision was disclosed in an office order issued last Thursday and signed by Deputy Secretary of the ministry’s Administration-1 Branch Md Maksudul Islam.
The control room will operate from Room No. 528 of the Ministry of Agriculture until further orders.
A total of 27 teams have been assigned to its activities, with each team comprising an officer, an administrative officer and an office assistant.According to the order, the control room will operate in two shifts from September 11 to September 24. The first shift will run from 8:00am to 3:00pm and the second from 3:00pm to 10:00pm.
The Additional Secretary (Fertilizer Management and Materials) will supervise the control room overall.One of its key responsibilities is to regularly collect and preserve information on fertiliser supply, stock, transportation and distribution from different districts and upazilas.
The control room has been instructed to immediately notify relevant authorities if information emerges about irregularities in fertiliser transportation, artificial shortages, stockpiling, black marketing or excessive prices.
If a shortage appears likely in any district or upazila, the control room will identify the area on a priority basis and make necessary recommendations.
It will also maintain regular communication with field-level officials, collect the latest information on the fertiliser situation and report to higher authorities.
Complaints from farmers, fertiliser dealers, transporters and other concerned people will be received and acted upon promptly.
In emergencies, the control room will coordinate with district administrations, agriculture departments, fertiliser dealers and other relevant institutions to take necessary measures.
The daily fertiliser situation, complaints received, measures taken and important incidents must be recorded in a register. Daily and weekly reports will then be prepared based on the information and submitted to designated authorities.
If disruptions in fertiliser supply, transportation problems, storage complications or dealer-level irregularities are reported, initiatives will be taken for prompt action.
The order also instructed the control room to verify fertiliser-related complaints and important information published in social media, mass media and other sources before informing the relevant authorities for field-level action.
Information and complaints received through telephone, mobile phone, email and WhatsApp must also be properly received, recorded and acted upon as necessary.
The ministry ordered proper handover of responsibilities during shift changes.
Fertiliser-related reports from newspapers, television, online news outlets and social media will also be collected and quickly verified through communication with officials at district, upazila and union levels.
