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To the Editor...
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Fair price for farmers
BTV in one of its economy related programmes presented a comparative chart showing the prices of certain vegetables in the wholesale market and in retail and footpath shops. It is evident from the chart that the retailers in different parts of the city charge 3 to 5 times higher prices than the wholesalers at Karwan Bazar. It is revealed that the wholesalers purchase vegetables from the actual growers at a very cheap price. It means the real growers (farmers) are not getting genuine prices of their hard-grown agricultural produce
and the ordinary consumers are being compelled to buy the same commodity at a much higher price.
Due to the poor and faulty agricultural marketing system, the farmers are getting poorer and poorer day by day and they are losing their interest in farming.
Perhaps for this reason the oldest industry of the human civilisation, that is, agriculture is often branded as the 'Sunset Industry'. Even the people at the policy-making level often show an unsympathetic attitude to recognise the importance and contributions of the farmers and those
who are working relentlessly (KRISHIBIDS) for raising farm production. In fact, through the dedicated efforts of both farmers and Krishibids, agricultural production in Bangladesh has increased significantly.
Meanwhile, it is sincerely hoped that the authorities concerned would take drastic measures to improve the agricultural marketing system so that farmers get fair price of their labour and they can make some profit out of their investment. At the same time it is to be ensured that consumers get agri-products at reasonable prices. Agricultural marketing infrastructure
may be developed by the government at the growers' level as a potential non-farm employment sector.
M.Zahidul Haque
Chairman
Department of Language Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University
Balance of terror?
After the rape and grievous wounds inflicted upon Iraq, which country is going to become the next victim? Iran or North Korea? Why not Israel?
Why don't uN arms inspectors,
NATO experts and IAEA team members visit Israel, make investigation and take necessary action against Israeli nuclear weapons? Many reports say that Israel has produced and stockpiled over two hundred nuclear weapons under the umbrella protection of the uS.
In 1981 Israel with uS logistic support bombarded and destroyed an Iraqi nuclear reactor.
In 2002 the uS invaded and occupied Iraq on the pretext that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction. But thousands of uS, uK troops and their allies,
OIA and FBI agents deployed in Iraq have miserably failed to find any WMD during the last two years. The uS is now trying to divert world opinion accusing Iran and North Korea of carrying out nuclear programmes.
What chicanery and buffoonery! The uS itself is the mother of atomic bomb. It produced the first atom bombs in 1945, and dropped them in Japan, killing and maiming over half a million people.
Subsequently, the former
uSSR (now Russia) developed atom bomb in 1949, the uK in 1952, France in 1960, Israel
(secretly and not declared) in
1972.
Tit for tat, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Due to fear of atom bombs of the uSSR and China, the uS did not dare to use her atom bomb during the Korean War (1950-53) and the Vietnam War.
Many people are of the opinion that uS President George Bush knew it positively and definitely that Iraq did not possess weapons of mass destruction. If the uS and her allies had the slightest doubt that Iraq had in her possession nuclear weapons, they could never take the risk of a war with Iraq.
Might is right. Has it not become necessary for a sovereign and independent state to have an atomic bomb for its own defence and survival from foreign aggression?
The IAEA Chief Mohammad EI Baradi says that now at least 40 countries have the know-how to produce nuclear arms.
Is the world moving towards a great man-made calamity, catastrophe? Annihilation of mankind?
o H Kabir
Hare Street, Wari, Dhaka-1203