17,326 to get Farmer Cards in first phase in Ctg

A total of 17,326 farmers from the Chattogram agricultural region are set to receive "Farmer Cards" as part of a government initiative aimed at supporting farmers.

According to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) in the region, the block-level survey to identify eligible farmers is nearing completion.

Two of the three phases of the survey have already been completed, while the third phase is currently underway.

The prime minister is expected to inaugurate the distribution of the cards on September 17 in Fulgazi of Feni district. The cards will be distributed simultaneously across 77 agricultural blocks nationwide, with the Prime Minister attending the event in Feni.

Agriculturist Mohammad Ali Jinnah, Additional Director of the Department of Agricultural Extension (Chattogram Region), told BSS that a system has been established to assign a unique 14-digit "Farmer ID" to farmers of all categories across the country.

The card will also serve as a banking debit card. Initially, data collection is being conducted by selecting one agricultural block from each upazila, and the initiative will later be extended to all blocks.

In the first phase of the programme, most of the selected farmers in the Chattogram Division have already opened bank accounts in their own names at state-owned bank branches. The process of opening individual bank accounts for farmers across all six upazilas of Feni district has been completed.

According to information provided by the Chattogram Regional Office of the Department of Agricultural Extension, the initial phase of Farmer Card distribution has been completed for farmers in designated blocks across several areas: one block each in Hathazari and Raozan upazilas of Chattogram district; one block each in Pekua and Maheshkhali upazilas of Cox's Bazar district; six blocks covering the six upazilas of Feni district; and one block in one upazila each in Bandarban, Rangamati, Khagrachhari, Lakshmipur and Noakhali districts.

According to DAE sources, a seven-member committee led by the respective Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) has been formed in each upazila to identify farmers eligible for the "Farmer Card" in the four districts of the agro-region.

The committees initially identified around 17,326 farmers as eligible for the Farmer Card in the Chattogram region. The names of the remaining eligible farmers will be finalized and submitted to the respective banks in phases.

The "Farmer Card" initiative was part of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party's (BNP) election commitment made before it assumed power in February this year.

Under the programme, cardholders will receive annual financial support through Janata Bank, Sonali Bank and Bangladesh Krishi Bank, with each farmer entitled to Tk 2,500 annually.

The DAE said farmers possessing these cards will receive various benefits, including affordable irrigation services, training, support for agricultural machinery, pest-control guidance, marketing facilities for farm produce, agricultural insurance training, subsidies and incentives, loans and agricultural inputs.

Apru Marma, Deputy Director of the Department of Agricultural Extension in Chattogram, told BSS, "The 'Farmer Card' is a historic initiative in the country's agricultural system. Through this, a farmer's professional identity, farming-related data, banking facilities and government agricultural services are being brought under an integrated framework for the first time."

"Consequently, it will be possible to provide farmers with an institutional identity, recognizing them not merely as producers but as vital stakeholders in the national economy. Most importantly, government services and assistance will reach farmers more swiftly, transparently and conveniently," he added.