Home ›› 15 Mar 2023 ›› Nation
Frequent price hikes of diesel have aggravated the suffering of the farmers in char areas of Brahmaputra River in Chilmari upazila of Kurigram district.
The farmers and other consumers in the remote char areas often have to spend at least Tk 2- 3 high for one litre of diesel against the government fixed rate of Tk 109.25 enjoyed by mainland farmers.
Char farmers have to buy diesel at a higher rate from retailers as they have to spend additional amounts to transport the fuel to remote areas after buying it from dealers. But the rate of diesel was the same in the char and mainland while the dealers got diesel supply from the floating depots on the Brahmaputra three years ago.
Two barges remain idle on the Brahmaputra at the Chilmari naval port at present. The floating fuel depots of Meghna Petroleum Ltd storing capacity of 4.45 lakh litres and Jamuna Petrolum Ltd of 5.12 lakh capacity have been kept inoperative at Chilamri ghat that left at least 500 workers jobless.
The barges stopped fuel supply in 2021 and 2020 respectively. Some 12 employees are still working in each floating depot.
Many of the dealers said floating fuel depots stations had been set up in the Chilmari naval port in 1989. Initially, there were two barges of each Meghna and Jamuna petroleum ltd and supply of petroleum in the depots was adequate. Diesel has been supplied in the greater Rangpur region from Chilmari floating depots by the listed dealers since 1997.
Later, two barges were removed from the naval port in 1998 on the plea of repairing and renovation.
The supply was kept running in two other barges since 2012 which became irregular later. Jamuna Petroleum Ltd stopped their supply in the barge in 2020 and Meghna Petroleum in 2021.
A fuel dealer of Chilmari, Joynal Miah said, diesel is being carried by tank lorries from Bagahbari and Parbatipur fuel depots. Additional Tk 2,000 needs to bring 1,000 litres of fuel from the depots.
Retailers often charge high prices of fuel while selling among the farmers and consumers as they have to carry the fuel in remote char areas of the upazila.
Diesel could be sold at fixed price among the farmers if there is supply from Chilmari floating depots according to the demand.
“We appealed to the authority concerned to take immediate measures but steps are yet to take in this regard,” he noted.
Another dealer, Hazrat Ali said, the floating fuel vessel on the Brahmaputra is a traditional beauty which also serves a significant purpose for agricultural development in the district. Fuel supply in those barges was kept shut due to negligence of the authority.
Farmer Ajgar Ali, 65, of Char Shakhahati area of the upazila said, cropping pattern has been intensified in the district during the past years. Boro and maize are being cultivated on a large scale that needs huge irrigation. Irrigation demands plenty of diesel supply. They have to spend additional amounts to buy diesel from the retailers.
“I need 40-50 litres of diesel to run shallow machines to supply water every day during the boro paddy farming season,” said Momotaz Ali, a 60-year-old farmer at Astomir char.
There are around 10,000 shallow machines in the entire Chilmari upazila. Of them, 70 per cent are operated in char areas, according to local agriculture officials.
A boatman, Moidul Islam, 45, of Ramanaghat said, around one thousand passengers, goods laden including fishing boats ply in the river every day from the naval port.
“We have to buy diesel from the retailers at high prices due to absence of supply from the floating oil depots,” he also said.
A retailer of Astomir Char requesting not to be named said they have to bring fuel to the remote char areas using horse-drawn carts to deliver to the farmers and other consumers. They get no commission from the dealers. So, they often have to charge Tk 1-2 high per litre from the buyers to minimize their carrying cost.
Akbor Miah, 50, a worker of Ramanaghat said the floating depots have created job opportunities for around five hundred people during their functioning. People lost jobs soon after the depots went inoperative. Few of them, however, are working as day labours at the naval port.
Meghna Petroleum Ltd Floating barge in-charge, Chilmari, Mohsin Hossain said, the fuel tanker- ship cannot come to Chilmari naval port due to loss of navigability of the river.
The company is planning to set up a permanent fuel depot at Chilmari as there is a huge demand for petroleum, he added.
Jamuna Petroleum Ltd Floating barge in-charge, Chilmari, Mohammad Shajalal said the companies will résumé the fuel supply in the floating depot if the navigability of the river improves.
