By Xinhua
Dhaka : Bangladesh’s agriculture ministry has approved a fund of $10 million or 690 million taka for immediate distribution to farmers hit by the cyclone Sidr which has left a trail of death and destruction across the country, media reported Wednesday.
The amount will be disbursed among the affected farmers within the next 10 days in the first phase of the country’s rehabilitation programme, the Financial Express reported, quoting ministry sources.
Some 1,300 tonnes of seed and 9,588 tonnes of fertilizers will be distributed in the rehabilitation programme that covers 39,700 hectares of land.
“The ministry will provide seeds, fertilizers and irrigation facility to the affected farmers of 29 cyclone-hit districts under the three-phase rehabilitation programme,” said a high official of the ministry.
He said the farmers would receive government support for cultivation of paddy, wheat, maize, beans and vegetables.
The agriculture ministry, the Bangladesh Bank and voluntary organisations will work on a coordinated rehabilitation programme for equitable distribution of funds among the cyclone victims, the official said.
The government had earlier provided $15.4 million or 1.06 billion taka for rehabilitation of agriculture sector after floods hit the country’s northern and northeastern parts during July and September this year, which killed more than 1,000 people and left affected 16 million.
The cyclone Sidr, one of the fiercest the country recalls for the past 100 years, slammed the country’s southern and southwestern areas on the night of Nov 15, affecting 30 of the total 64 districts and leaving more than 1,000 people dead and millions homeless.